MOFA response to statements in French government’s updated Indo-Pacific strategy concerning Taiwan and cross-strait security
July 20, 2025On July 18, the French government released its newest Indo-Pacific strategy report (La stratégie indopacifique de la France), which pointed out that China’s growing assertiveness in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea was undermining security in the Indo-Pacific region. The report warned that a high-intensity conflict in the Taiwan Strait would have major repercussions, such as on the global economy, and would run the risk of expanding to other areas. In addition, it reaffirmed the French government’s commitment to preserving cross-strait peace and stability, as well as its opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force, threat, or coercion, and called for the peaceful resolution of cross-strait disputes.While the 2022 version of the report noted France’s concerns over tensions across the Taiwan Strait, this year’s version added France’s high regard for cross-strait peace and stability and opposition to unilateral changes to the status quo. Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung deeply appreciates and welcomes the statements in the new report.The joint declaration following the UK-France summit on July 10, France’s the National Strategic Review 2025 of July 14, and the updated Indo-Pacific strategy all express concern over and support for cross-strait peace and stability, demonstrating that the issue has become a matter of international consensus and interest. Upholding the spirit of integrated diplomacy, Taiwan will continue to strengthen collaboration with France and other democratic partners to jointly defend freedom and democracy and safeguard peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.
Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said it took over two decades to finalise the historic Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the United Kingdom, crediting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for bringing the deal back into focus and driving it to conclusion.
Speaking to IANS on the sidelines of the India-UK talks, Goyal said, “This is historic in itself. It took over two decades to finalise this FTA. But when Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave it momentum in 2021, brought it back into focus, and committed to getting it done, India started working on it consistently—and today, we are seeing the positive results.”
He pointed out that while several governments came and went in the UK, the discussions continued without interruption. “I believe this agreement will open immense opportunities in India, especially for our farmers, MSMEs, and small entrepreneurs,” he said.
Goyal congratulated Prime Minister Modi, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and the people of both countries on the signing of the landmark India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA).
“Duty-free access for about 99 per cent of Indian exports unlocks nearly $23 billion in opportunities for labour-intensive sectors, marking a new era of inclusive and gender-equitable growth,” the minister said.
Calling the agreement a “win-win” for flagship initiatives like ‘Make in India’ and ‘Vocal for Local,’ Goyal noted that the deal would drive job creation and enhance India’s strategic position in global trade.
The FTA was signed by Goyal and UK Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds, following the conclusion of negotiations earlier this year.
“This deal will transform the lives of artisans, weavers, and daily-wage earners employed in sectors such as textiles, leather, footwear, gems and jewellery, toys, and marine products,” he added.
Details 2025-07-22 President Lai meets cross-party Irish Oireachtas delegation On the morning of July 22, President Lai Ching-te met with a cross-party delegation from the Oireachtas (parliament) of Ireland. In remarks, President Lai stated that Taiwan and Ireland are both guardians of the values of freedom and democracy. He indicated that Taiwan will continue to take action and show the world that it is a trustworthy democratic partner that can contribute to the international community, saying that we look forward to building an even closer partnership with Ireland as we work together for the well-being of our peoples and for global democracy, peace, and prosperity. A translation of President Lai’s remarks follows: Deputy Speaker John McGuinness is a dear friend of Taiwan who also chairs the Ireland-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Association. Thanks to his efforts over the years, support for Taiwan has grown stronger in the Oireachtas. I thank him and all of our guests for traveling such a long way to demonstrate support for Taiwan and open more doors for exchanges and cooperation. Europe is Taiwan’s third largest trading partner and largest source of foreign investment. Ireland is a European stronghold for technology and innovative industries. Just like Taiwan, Ireland is an export-oriented economy. Our industrial structures are highly complementary. We hope that Taiwan’s electronics manufacturing and machinery industries can explore deeper cooperation with Ireland’s ICT software and biopharmaceutical fields, creating win-win outcomes. In May, the Irish government launched its National Semiconductor Strategy, outlining a vision to become a global semiconductor hub. Taiwan is home to the world’s most critical semiconductor ecosystem, and our own industrial development closely parallels that of Ireland. Moreover, we aspire to build non-red technological supply chains with democratic partners. I believe that going forward, Taiwan and Ireland can bolster collaboration so as to upgrade the competitiveness of our respective semiconductor industries. Together, we can help build a values-based economic system for democracies. I was delighted to receive congratulations from Deputy Speaker McGuinness on my election. Taiwan and Ireland are both guardians of the values of freedom and democracy. This visit from our guests further attests to our common beliefs. As authoritarianism continues to expand, Taiwan will continue to take action and show the world that it is a trustworthy democratic partner that can contribute to the international community. We look forward to building an even closer partnership with Ireland as we work together for the well-being of our peoples and for global democracy, peace, and prosperity. Deputy Speaker McGuinness then delivered remarks, stating that he has been to Taiwan on many occasions and that it is a great honor to join President Lai and his staff at the Presidential Office. He said that Ireland has continued to build its strong relationship with Taiwan based on our democratic values and the interests that we have in trade throughout the world, strengthening this relationship based on culture, education, and more. Noting that he served with many other diplomats from Taiwan, he said all had the same goal, which was to further the interests of the Ireland-Taiwan friendship and to ensure that it grows and prospers. The deputy speaker then extended to President Lai the delegation’s best wishes for his term in office, stating that they commit to the same values as the previous friendship groups that have been visiting Taiwan. He went on to say that some members of the group are newly elected, representing the next generation of the association, and that they are committed to working together with Taiwan to stand strong in the defense of democracy. Deputy Speaker McGuinness also noted that the father of Deputy Ken O’Flynn, one of the delegation members, played an important role as a former chairman of the association, remarking that it is good to see such continuity taking place. Deputy Speaker McGuiness said that he believes the world is facing huge challenges and uncertainty in terms of our markets and trade with one another. He said we have to watch for what the United States will do next and be conscious of what China is doing, emphasizing that the European Union stands strong in the center of this, while Ireland plays a huge role in the context of democracy, trade, and the betterment of all things for the citizens that they represent. The deputy speaker then stated that while we focus on the development of AI that is extremely important for all of us, we can work together to ensure that we control AI rather than AI controlling us. He also remarked that we cannot lose sight of our traditional trading means, saying that we have to keep all of our trade together, expand on that trade, and then take on the new technologies that come before us. Deputy Speaker McGuinness concluded his remarks by thanking President Lai for receiving the delegation, stating that they commit to their continuation of support for Taiwan and for democracy. Also in attendance were Deputies Malcolm Byrne and Barry Ward, and Senator Teresa Costello.
Details 2025-07-22 President Lai meets official delegation from European Parliament’s Special Committee on the European Democracy Shield On the morning of July 22, President Lai Ching-te met with an official delegation from the European Parliament’s Special Committee on the European Democracy Shield (EUDS). In remarks, President Lai thanked the committee for choosing to visit Taiwan for its first trip to Asia, demonstrating the close ties between Taiwan and Europe. President Lai emphasized that Taiwan, standing at the very frontline of the democratic world, is determined to protect democracy, peace, and prosperity worldwide. He expressed hope that we can share our experiences with Europe to foster even more resilient societies. A translation of President Lai’s remarks follows: Firstly, on behalf of the people of Taiwan, I extend a warm welcome to your delegation, which marks another official visit from the European Parliament. The Special Committee on the EUDS aims to strengthen societal resilience and counter disinformation and hybrid threats. Having been constituted at the beginning of this year, the committee has chosen to visit Taiwan for its first trip to Asia, demonstrating the close ties between Taiwan and Europe and the unlimited possibilities for deepening cooperation on issues of concern. I am also delighted to see many old friends of Taiwan gathered here today. I deeply appreciate your longstanding support for Taiwan. Taiwan and the European Union enjoy close trade and economic relations and share the values of freedom and democracy. However, in recent years, we have both been subjected to information manipulation and infiltration by foreign forces that seek to interfere in democratic elections, foment division in our societies, and shake people’s faith in democracy. Taiwan not only faces an onslaught of disinformation, but also is the target of gray-zone aggression. That is why, after taking office, I established the Whole-of-Society Defense Resilience Committee at the Presidential Office, with myself as convener. The committee is a platform that integrates domestic affairs, national defense, foreign affairs, cybersecurity, and civil resources. It aims to strengthen the capability of Taiwan’s society to defend itself against new forms of threat, pinpoint external and internal vulnerabilities, and bolster overall resilience and security. The efforts that democracies make are not for opposing anyone else; they are for safeguarding the way of life that we cherish – just as Europe has endeavored to promote diversity and human rights. The Taiwanese people firmly believe that when our society is united and people trust one another, we will be able to withstand any form of authoritarian aggression. Taiwan stands at the very frontline of the democratic world. We are determined to protect democracy, peace, and prosperity worldwide. We also hope to share our experiences with Europe and deepen cooperation in such fields as cybersecurity, media literacy, and societal resilience. Thank you once again for visiting Taiwan. Your presence further strengthens the foundations of Taiwan-Europe relations. Let us continue to work together to uphold freedom and democracy and foster even more resilient societies. EUDS Special Committee Chair Nathalie Loiseau then delivered remarks, saying that the delegation has members from different countries, including France, Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Belgium, and different political parties, but that they have in common their desire for stronger relations between the EU and Taiwan. Committee Chair Loiseau stated that the EU and Taiwan, having many things in common, should work more together. She noted that we have strong trade relations, strong investments on both sides, and strong cultural relations, while we are also facing very similar challenges and threats. She said that we are democracies living in a world where autocracies want to weaken and divide democracies. She added that we also face external information manipulation, cyberattacks, sabotage, attempts to capture elites, and every single gray-zone activity that aims to divide and weaken us. Committee Chair Loiseau pointed out another commonality, that we have never threatened our neighbors. She said that we want to live in peace and we care about our people; we want to defend ourselves, not to attack others. We are not being threatened because of what we do, she emphasized, but because of what we are; and thus there is no reason for not working more together to face these threats and attacks. Committee Chair Loiseau said that Taiwan has valuable experience and good practices in the area of societal resilience, and that they are interested in learning more about Taiwan’s whole-of-society approach. They in Europe are facing interference, she said, mainly from Russia, and they know that Russia inspires others. She added that they in the EU also have experience regulating social media in a way which combines freedom of expression and responsibility. In closing, the chair said that they are happy to have the opportunity to exchange views with President Lai and that the European Parliament will continue to strongly support relations between the EU and Taiwan. The delegation also included Members of the European Parliament Engin Eroglu, Tomáš Zdechovský, Michał Wawrykiewicz, Kathleen Van Brempt, and Markéta Gregorová.
Details 2025-07-17 President Lai meets President of Guatemalan Congress Nery Abilio Ramos y Ramos On the morning of July 17, President Lai Ching-te met with a delegation led by Nery Abilio Ramos y Ramos, the president of the Congress of the Republic of Guatemala. In remarks, President Lai thanked Congress President Ramos and the Guatemalan Congress for their support for Taiwan, and noted that official diplomatic relations between Taiwan and Guatemala go back more than 90 years. As important partners in the global democratic community, the president said, the two nations will continue moving forward together in joint defense of the values of democracy and freedom, and will cooperate to promote regional and global prosperity and development. A translation of President Lai’s remarks follows: I recall that when Congress President Ramos visited Taiwan in July last year, he put forward many ideas about how our countries could promote bilateral cooperation and exchanges. Now, a year later, he is leading another cross-party delegation from the Guatemalan Congress on a visit, demonstrating support for Taiwan and continuing to help deepen our diplomatic ties. In addition to extending a sincere welcome to the distinguished delegation members who have traveled so far to be here, I would also like to express our concern and condolences for everyone in Guatemala affected by the earthquake that struck earlier this month. We hope that the recovery effort is going smoothly. Official diplomatic relations between Taiwan and Guatemala go back more than 90 years. In such fields as healthcare, agriculture, education, and women’s empowerment, we have continually strengthened our cooperation to benefit our peoples. Just last month, Guatemala’s President Bernardo Arévalo and the First Lady led a delegation on a state visit to Taiwan. President Arévalo and I signed a letter of intent for semiconductor cooperation, and also witnessed the signing of cooperation documents to establish a political consultation mechanism and continue to promote bilateral investment. This has laid an even sounder foundation for bilateral exchanges and cooperation, and will help enhance both countries’ international competitiveness. Taiwan is currently running a semiconductor vocational training program, helping Guatemala cultivate semiconductor talent and develop its tech industry, and demonstrating our determination to share experience with democratic partners. At the same time, we continue to assist Taiwanese businesses in their efforts to develop overseas markets with Guatemala as an important base, spurring industrial development in both countries and increasing economic and trade benefits. I want to thank Congress President Ramos and the Guatemalan Congress for their continued support for Taiwan’s international participation. Representing the Guatemalan Congress, Congress President Ramos has signed resolutions in support of Taiwan, and has also issued statements addressing China’s misinterpretation of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758. Taiwan and Guatemala, as important partners in the global democratic community, will continue moving forward together in joint defense of the values of democracy and freedom, and will cooperate to promote regional and global prosperity and development. Congress President Ramos then delivered remarks, first noting that the members of the delegation are not only from different parties, but also represent different classes, cultures, professions, and departments, which shows that the diplomatic ties between Guatemala and the Republic of China (Taiwan) are based on firm friendships at all levels and in all fields. Noting that this was his second time to visit Taiwan and meet with President Lai, Congress President Ramos thanked the government of Taiwan for its warm hospitality. With the international situation growing more complex by the day, he said, Guatemala highly values its longstanding friendship and cooperative ties with Taiwan, and hopes that both sides can continue to deepen their cooperation in such areas as the economy, technology, education, agriculture, and culture, and work together to spur sustainable development in each of our countries. Congress President Ramos said that the way the Taiwan government looks after the well-being of its people is an excellent model for how other countries should promote national development and social well-being. Accordingly, he said, the Guatemalan Congress has stood for justice and, for a second time, adopted a resolution backing Taiwan’s participation in the World Health Assembly. Regarding President Arévalo’s state visit to Taiwan the previous month, Congress President Ramos commented that this high-level interaction has undoubtedly strengthened the diplomatic ties between Taiwan and Guatemala and led to more opportunities for cooperation. Congress President Ramos emphasized that democracy, freedom, and human rights are universal values that bind Taiwan and Guatemala together, and that he is confident the two countries’ diplomatic ties will continue to grow deeper. In closing, on behalf of the Republic of Guatemala, Congress President Ramos presented President Lai with a Chinese translation of the resolution that the Guatemalan Congress proposed to the UN in support of Taiwan’s participation in international organizations, demonstrating the staunch bonds of friendship between the two countries. The delegation was accompanied to the Presidential Office by Guatemala Ambassador Luis Raúl Estévez López.
Details 2025-07-08 President Lai meets delegation led by Foreign Minister Jean-Victor Harvel Jean-Baptiste of Republic of Haiti On the morning of July 8, President Lai Ching-te met with a delegation led by Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Victor Harvel Jean-Baptiste of the Republic of Haiti and his wife. In remarks, President Lai noted that our two countries will soon mark the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations and that our exchanges have been fruitful in important areas such as public security, educational cooperation, and infrastructure. The president stated that Taiwan will continue to work together with Haiti to promote the development of medical and health care, food security, and construction that benefits people’s livelihoods. The president thanked Haiti for supporting Taiwan’s international participation and expressed hope that both countries will continue to support each other, deepen cooperation, and face various challenges together. A translation of President Lai’s remarks follows: I am delighted to meet and exchange ideas with Minister Jean-Baptiste, his wife, and our distinguished guests. Minister Jean-Baptiste is the highest-ranking official from Haiti to visit Taiwan since former President Jovenel Moïse visited in 2018, demonstrating the importance that the Haitian government attaches to our bilateral diplomatic ties. On behalf of the Republic of China (Taiwan), I extend a sincere welcome. Next year marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between our two countries. Our bilateral exchanges have been fruitful in important areas such as public security, educational cooperation, and infrastructure. Over the past few years, Haiti has faced challenges in such areas as food supply and healthcare. Taiwan will continue to work together with Haiti through various cooperative programs to promote the development of medical and health care, food security, and construction that benefits people’s livelihoods. I want to thank the government of Haiti and Minister Jean-Baptiste for speaking out in support of Taiwan on the international stage for many years. Minister Jean-Baptiste’s personal letter to the World Health Organization Secretariat in May this year and Minister of Public Health and Population Bertrand Sinal’s public statement during the World Health Assembly both affirmed Taiwan’s efforts and contributions to global public health and supported Taiwan’s international participation, for which we are very grateful. I hope that Taiwan and Haiti will continue to support each other and deepen cooperation. I believe that Minister Jean-Baptiste’s visit will open up more opportunities for cooperation for both countries, helping Taiwan and Haiti face various challenges together. In closing, I once again offer a sincere welcome to the delegation led by Minister Jean-Baptiste, and ask him to convey greetings from Taiwan to Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé and the members of the Transitional Presidential Council. Minister Jean-Baptiste then delivered remarks, saying that he is extremely honored to visit Taiwan and reaffirm the solid and friendly cooperative relationship based on mutual respect between the Republic of Haiti and the Republic of China (Taiwan), which will soon mark its 70th anniversary. He also brought greetings to President Lai from Haiti’s Transitional Presidential Council and Prime Minister Fils-Aimé. Minister Jean-Baptiste emphasized that over the past few decades, despite the great geographical distance and developmental and cultural differences between our two countries, we have nevertheless established a firm friendship and demonstrated to the world the progress resulting from the mutual assistance and cooperation between our peoples. Minister Jean-Baptiste pointed out that our two countries cooperate closely in agriculture, health, education, and community development and have achieved concrete results. Taiwan’s voice, he said, is thus essential for the people of Haiti. He noted that Taiwan also plays an important role in peace and innovation and actively participates in global cooperative efforts. Pointing out that the world is currently facing significant challenges and that Haiti is experiencing its most difficult period in history, Minister Jean-Baptiste said that at this time, Taiwan and Haiti need to unite, help each other, and jointly think about how to move forward and deepen bilateral relations to benefit the peoples of both countries. Minister Jean-Baptiste said that he is pleased that throughout our solid and friendly diplomatic relationship, both countries have demonstrated mutual trust, mutual respect, and the values we jointly defend. He then stated his belief that Haiti and Taiwan will together create a cooperation model and future that are sincere, friendly, and sustainable. The delegation was accompanied to the Presidential Office by Chargé d’Affaires a.i. Francilien Victorin of the Embassy of the Republic of Haiti in Taiwan.
Details 2025-07-01 President Lai meets delegation from 2025 Taiwan International Ocean Forum On the afternoon of July 1, President Lai Ching-te met with a delegation from the 2025 Taiwan International Ocean Forum (TIOF). In remarks, President Lai noted that the people of Taiwan will continue to work with democratic partners throughout the world in a maritime spirit of freedom and openness to contribute to ocean governance and jointly ensure maritime security. He expressed hope that their visit will help forge stronger friendships between Taiwan and international maritime partners, so that all can work together to spur shared maritime prosperity and sustainable development for the next generation. A translation of President Lai’s remarks follows: I want to thank our guests for coming here to the Presidential Office. The 2025 TIOF will take place tomorrow and the day after, and I thank you all for making the long trip to Taiwan to attend the event and share your valuable insights and experiences. This year’s forum will focus on strategies for strengthening maritime security and pathways to achieving a sustainable blue economy. By attending this forum, our guests are highlighting their commitment to safeguarding the oceans, and beyond that, taking concrete action to demonstrate support for Taiwan. I once again offer deepest gratitude on behalf of the people of Taiwan. Taiwan holds a key position on the first island chain, is one of the world’s top 10 shipping nations, and accounts for close to 10 percent of global container shipping by volume. As such, Taiwan occupies a unique and important position in maritime strategy. For Taiwan, the ocean is more than just a basis for survival and development; it is also an important driver of national prosperity. In my inaugural address last year, I spoke of a threefold approach to further Taiwan’s development. One of these involves further developing our strengths as a maritime nation. Our government must actively help deepen our connections with the ocean, and must continue to promote green shipping, a sustainable fishing industry, marine renewable energy, and other forms of industrial transformation. It must also make use of marine technology and digital innovation to create a new paradigm that balances environmental, economic, and social inclusion concerns. This will help enhance Taiwan’s responsibilities and competitiveness as a maritime nation. Taiwan is surrounded by ocean, and our territorial waters are a natural protective barrier. However, continued gray-zone aggression from China creates serious threats and challenges to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. Our government continues to invest resources to deal with increasingly complex maritime security issues. In addition to building coast guard patrol vessels, we must also step up efforts to build underwater, surface, and airborne unmanned vehicles and smart reconnaissance equipment, so as to demonstrate Taiwan’s determination to defend democracy and freedom and commitment to maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. Oceans are Taiwan’s roots, and provide the channels by which we engage with the world. The people of Taiwan will continue to work with democratic partners throughout the world in a maritime spirit of freedom and openness to contribute to ocean governance and jointly ensure maritime security. The TIOF was first launched in 2020, and has now become an important platform for enhancement of cooperation between Taiwan and other countries. I hope that our distinguished guests will reap great benefits at this year’s forum, and further hope that this visit will help forge stronger friendships between Taiwan and international maritime partners, so that all can work together to spur shared maritime prosperity and sustainable development for the next generation. Chairman of The Washington Times Thomas McDevitt, a member of the delegation, then delivered remarks, noting first that July 4th, this Friday, is Independence Day in America. Independence is a sacred, powerful word which has great meaning in this part of the world, he said. Chairman McDevitt indicated that Taiwan has truly become a global beacon of democracy and a key partner for many nations. He then quoted President Lai’s 2024 inaugural address: “We will work together to combat disinformation, strengthen democratic resilience, address challenges, and allow Taiwan to become the MVP of the democratic world.” Chairman McDevitt went on to say that he appreciated the president’s speech with regard to his philosophical depth, sensitivity, and both moral and political clarity. He said that he was deeply moved by the speech, but within a few days of it, China responded with military activities and many threats. The chairman then emphasized that we are in a civilization crisis. Chairman McDevitt mentioned that President Lai has begun a series of 10 lectures, and remarked that they would help the world to understand the identity and the nature of Taiwan, as well as the situation we are in in the world. On behalf of all the delegation, Chairman McDevitt thanked the president for his leadership in dealing with these issues thoughtfully. Chairman McDevitt concluded with a line from the Old Testament which states that if the people have no vision, they will perish. He said that he believes Taiwan’s president has led the people of Taiwan, and the world, with a vision of how to navigate this great civilization crisis together. The delegation also included Members of the Japanese House of Representatives Kikawada Hitoshi, Aoyama Yamato, and Genma Kentaro, and Member of Parliament of the United Kingdom Gavin Williamson.
Details 2025-05-20 President Lai interviewed by Nippon Television and Yomiuri TV In a recent interview on Nippon Television’s news zero program, President Lai Ching-te responded to questions from host Mr. Sakurai Sho and Yomiuri TV Shanghai Bureau Chief Watanabe Masayo on topics including reflections on his first year in office, cross-strait relations, China’s military threats, Taiwan-United States relations, and Taiwan-Japan relations. The interview was broadcast on the evening of May 19. During the interview, President Lai stated that China intends to change the world’s rules-based international order, and that if Taiwan were invaded, global supply chains would be disrupted. Therefore, he said, Taiwan will strengthen its national defense, prevent war by preparing for war, and achieve the goal of peace. The president also noted that Taiwan’s purpose for developing drones is based on national security and industrial needs, and that Taiwan hopes to collaborate with Japan. He then reiterated that China’s threats are an international problem, and expressed hope to work together with the US, Japan, and others in the global democratic community to prevent China from starting a war. Following is the text of the questions and the president’s responses: Q: How do you feel as you are about to round out your first year in office? President Lai: When I was young, I was determined to practice medicine and save lives. When I left medicine to go into politics, I was determined to transform Taiwan. And when I was sworn in as president on May 20 last year, I was determined to strengthen the nation. Time flies, and it has already been a year. Although the process has been very challenging, I am deeply honored to be a part of it. I am also profoundly grateful to our citizens for allowing me the opportunity to give back to our country. The future will certainly be full of more challenges, but I will do everything I can to unite the people and continue strengthening the nation. That is how I am feeling now. Q: We are now coming up on the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, and over this period, we have often heard that conflict between Taiwan and the mainland is imminent. Do you personally believe that a cross-strait conflict could happen? President Lai: The international community is very much aware that China intends to replace the US and change the world’s rules-based international order, and annexing Taiwan is just the first step. So, as China’s military power grows stronger, some members of the international community are naturally on edge about whether a cross-strait conflict will break out. The international community must certainly do everything in its power to avoid a conflict in the Taiwan Strait; there is too great a cost. Besides causing direct disasters to both Taiwan and China, the impact on the global economy would be even greater, with estimated losses of US$10 trillion from war alone – that is roughly 10 percent of the global GDP. Additionally, 20 percent of global shipping passes through the Taiwan Strait and surrounding waters, so if a conflict breaks out in the strait, other countries including Japan and Korea would suffer a grave impact. For Japan and Korea, a quarter of external transit passes through the Taiwan Strait and surrounding waters, and a third of the various energy resources and minerals shipped back from other countries pass through said areas. If Taiwan were invaded, global supply chains would be disrupted, and therefore conflict in the Taiwan Strait must be avoided. Such a conflict is indeed avoidable. I am very thankful to Prime Minister of Japan Ishiba Shigeru and former Prime Ministers Abe Shinzo, Suga Yoshihide, and Kishida Fumio, as well as US President Donald Trump and former President Joe Biden, and the other G7 leaders, for continuing to emphasize at international venues that peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait are essential components for global security and prosperity. When everyone in the global democratic community works together, stacking up enough strength to make China’s objectives unattainable or to make the cost of invading Taiwan too high for it to bear, a conflict in the strait can naturally be avoided. Q: As you said, President Lai, maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is also very important for other countries. How can war be avoided? What sort of countermeasures is Taiwan prepared to take to prevent war? President Lai: As Mr. Sakurai mentioned earlier, we are coming up on the 80th anniversary of the end of WWII. There are many lessons we can take from that war. First is that peace is priceless, and war has no winners. From the tragedies of WWII, there are lessons that humanity should learn. We must pursue peace, and not start wars blindly, as that would be a major disaster for humanity. In other words, we must be determined to safeguard peace. The second lesson is that we cannot be complacent toward authoritarian powers. If you give them an inch, they will take a mile. They will keep growing, and eventually, not only will peace be unattainable, but war will be inevitable. The third lesson is why WWII ended: It ended because different groups joined together in solidarity. Taiwan, Japan, and the Indo-Pacific region are all directly subjected to China’s threats, so we hope to be able to join together in cooperation. This is why we proposed the Four Pillars of Peace action plan. First, we will strengthen our national defense. Second, we will strengthen economic resilience. Third is standing shoulder to shoulder with the democratic community to demonstrate the strength of deterrence. Fourth is that as long as China treats Taiwan with parity and dignity, Taiwan is willing to conduct exchanges and cooperate with China, and seek peace and mutual prosperity. These four pillars can help us avoid war and achieve peace. That is to say, Taiwan hopes to achieve peace through strength, prevent war by preparing for war, keeping war from happening and pursuing the goal of peace. Q: Regarding drones, everyone knows that recently, Taiwan has been actively researching, developing, and introducing drones. Why do you need to actively research, develop, and introduce new drones at this time? President Lai: This is for two purposes. The first is to meet national security needs. The second is to meet industrial development needs. Because Taiwan, Japan, and the Philippines are all part of the first island chain, and we are all democratic nations, we cannot be like an authoritarian country like China, which has an unlimited national defense budget. In this kind of situation, island nations such as Taiwan, Japan, and the Philippines should leverage their own technologies to develop national defense methods that are asymmetric and utilize unmanned vehicles. In particular, from the Russo-Ukrainian War, we see that Ukraine has successfully utilized unmanned vehicles to protect itself and prevent Russia from unlimited invasion. In other words, the Russo-Ukrainian War has already proven the importance of drones. Therefore, the first purpose of developing drones is based on national security needs. Second, the world has already entered the era of smart technology. Whether generative, agentic, or physical, AI will continue to develop. In the future, cars and ships will also evolve into unmanned vehicles and unmanned boats, and there will be unmanned factories. Drones will even be able to assist with postal deliveries, or services like Uber, Uber Eats, and foodpanda, or agricultural irrigation and pesticide spraying. Therefore, in the future era of comprehensive smart technology, developing unmanned vehicles is a necessity. Taiwan, based on industrial needs, is actively planning the development of drones and unmanned vehicles. I would like to take this opportunity to express Taiwan’s hope to collaborate with Japan in the unmanned vehicle industry. Just as we do in the semiconductor industry, where Japan has raw materials, equipment, and technology, and Taiwan has wafer manufacturing, our two countries can cooperate. Japan is a technological power, and Taiwan also has significant technological strengths. If Taiwan and Japan work together, we will not only be able to safeguard peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and security in the Indo-Pacific region, but it will also be very helpful for the industrial development of both countries. Q: The drones you just described probably include examples from the Russo-Ukrainian War. Taiwan and China are separated by the Taiwan Strait. Do our drones need to have cross-sea flight capabilities? President Lai: Taiwan does not intend to counterattack the mainland, and does not intend to invade any country. Taiwan’s drones are meant to protect our own nation and territory. Q: Former President Biden previously stated that US forces would assist Taiwan’s defense in the event of an attack. President Trump, however, has yet to clearly state that the US would help defend Taiwan. Do you think that in such an event, the US would help defend Taiwan? Or is Taiwan now trying to persuade the US? President Lai: Former President Biden and President Trump have answered questions from reporters. Although their responses were different, strong cooperation with Taiwan under the Biden administration has continued under the Trump administration; there has been no change. During President Trump’s first term, cooperation with Taiwan was broader and deeper compared to former President Barack Obama’s terms. After former President Biden took office, cooperation with Taiwan increased compared to President Trump’s first term. Now, during President Trump’s second term, cooperation with Taiwan is even greater than under former President Biden. Taiwan-US cooperation continues to grow stronger, and has not changed just because President Trump and former President Biden gave different responses to reporters. Furthermore, the Trump administration publicly stated that in the future, the US will shift its strategic focus from Europe to the Indo-Pacific. The US secretary of defense even publicly stated that the primary mission of the US is to prevent China from invading Taiwan, maintain stability in the Indo-Pacific, and thus maintain world peace. There is a saying in Taiwan that goes, “Help comes most to those who help themselves.” Before asking friends and allies for assistance in facing threats from China, Taiwan must first be determined and prepared to defend itself. This is Taiwan’s principle, and we are working in this direction, making all the necessary preparations to safeguard the nation. Q: I would like to ask you a question about Taiwan-Japan relations. After the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011, you made an appeal to give Japan a great deal of assistance and care. In particular, you visited Sendai to offer condolences. Later, you also expressed condolences and concern after the earthquakes in Aomori and Kumamoto. What are your expectations for future Taiwan-Japan exchanges and development? President Lai: I come from Tainan, and my constituency is in Tainan. Tainan has very deep ties with Japan, and of course, Taiwan also has deep ties with Japan. However, among Taiwan’s 22 counties and cities, Tainan has the deepest relationship with Japan. I sincerely hope that both of you and your teams will have an opportunity to visit Tainan. I will introduce Tainan’s scenery, including architecture from the era of Japanese rule, Tainan’s cuisine, and unique aspects of Tainan society, and you can also see lifestyles and culture from the Showa era. The Wushantou Reservoir in Tainan was completed by engineer Mr. Hatta Yoichi from Kanazawa, Japan and the team he led to Tainan after he graduated from then-Tokyo Imperial University. It has nearly a century of history and is still in use today. This reservoir, along with the 16,000-km-long Chianan Canal, transformed the 150,000-hectare Chianan Plain into Taiwan’s premier rice-growing area. It was that foundation in agriculture that enabled Taiwan to develop industry and the technology sector of today. The reservoir continues to supply water to Tainan Science Park. It is used by residents of Tainan, the agricultural sector, and industry, and even the technology sector in Xinshi Industrial Park, as well as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. Because of this, the people of Tainan are deeply grateful for Mr. Hatta and very friendly toward the people of Japan. A major earthquake, the largest in 50 years, struck Tainan on February 6, 2016, resulting in significant casualties. As mayor of Tainan at the time, I was extremely grateful to then-Prime Minister Abe, who sent five Japanese officials to the disaster site in Tainan the day after the earthquake. They were very thoughtful and asked what kind of assistance we needed from the Japanese government. They offered to provide help based on what we needed. I was deeply moved, as former Prime Minister Abe showed such care, going beyond the formality of just sending supplies that we may or may not have actually needed. Instead, the officials asked what we needed and then provided assistance based on those needs, which really moved me. Similarly, when the Great East Japan Earthquake of 2011 or the later Kumamoto earthquakes struck, the people of Tainan, under my leadership, naturally and dutifully expressed their support. Even earlier, when central Taiwan was hit by a major earthquake in 1999, Japan was the first country to deploy a rescue team to the disaster area. On February 6, 2018, after a major earthquake in Hualien, former Prime Minister Abe appeared in a video holding up a message of encouragement he had written in calligraphy saying “Remain strong, Taiwan.” All of Taiwan was deeply moved. Over the years, Taiwan and Japan have supported each other when earthquakes struck, and have forged bonds that are family-like, not just neighborly. This is truly valuable. In the future, I hope Taiwan and Japan can be like brothers, and that the peoples of Taiwan and Japan can treat one another like family. If Taiwan has a problem, then Japan has a problem; if Japan has a problem, then Taiwan has a problem. By caring for and helping each other, we can face various challenges and difficulties, and pursue a brighter future. Q: President Lai, you just used the phrase “If Taiwan has a problem, then Japan has a problem.” In the event that China attempts to invade Taiwan by force, what kind of response measures would you hope the US military and Japan’s Self-Defense Forces take? President Lai: As I just mentioned, annexing Taiwan is only China’s first step. Its ultimate objective is to change the rules-based international order. That being the case, China’s threats are an international problem. So, I would very much hope to work together with the US, Japan, and others in the global democratic community to prevent China from starting a war – prevention, after all, is more important than cure.
Source: Republic of Taiwan – Ministry of Foreign Affairs
MOFA response to French government’s National Strategic Review 2025 conveying concern over Taiwan and cross-strait security
July 15, 2025
On July 14, the French government released its National Strategic Review 2025, which mentioned the Taiwan Strait and Taiwan six times. The report noted that China has continued to strengthen its military capabilities, increase the intensity of military exercises around Taiwan, exert pressure on Taiwan through military force and other means, and fuel tensions and instability in the region.
The 2022 version of the policy document also stated that China’s military expansion had threatened the status quo across the Taiwan Strait. However, this year’s report devoted more attention to China’s threats against Taiwan. It also expressed France’s concerns regarding Taiwan and cross-strait security. Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung warmly welcomes and deeply appreciates the strategic review.
Through the report, France has once again expressed concern over cross-strait security and reiterated the importance of Taiwan. The review follows from the joint declaration issued after President Emmanuel Macron of France met with Prime Minister Keir Starmer of the United Kingdom in London on July 10 for the 37th UK-France summit. In the declaration, the two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasizes that Taiwan, as an indispensable member of the Indo-Pacific region, will continue to work with France and other democratic partners to defend freedom and democracy and staunchly uphold peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and in the Indo-Pacific.
Source: Republic of Taiwan – Ministry of Foreign Affairs
MOFA response to statements in French government’s updated Indo-Pacific strategy concerning Taiwan and cross-strait security
July 20, 2025
On July 18, the French government released its newest Indo-Pacific strategy report (La stratégie indopacifique de la France), which pointed out that China’s growing assertiveness in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea was undermining security in the Indo-Pacific region. The report warned that a high-intensity conflict in the Taiwan Strait would have major repercussions, such as on the global economy, and would run the risk of expanding to other areas. In addition, it reaffirmed the French government’s commitment to preserving cross-strait peace and stability, as well as its opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force, threat, or coercion, and called for the peaceful resolution of cross-strait disputes.
While the 2022 version of the report noted France’s concerns over tensions across the Taiwan Strait, this year’s version added France’s high regard for cross-strait peace and stability and opposition to unilateral changes to the status quo. Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung deeply appreciates and welcomes the statements in the new report.
The joint declaration following the UK-France summit on July 10, France’s the National Strategic Review 2025 of July 14, and the updated Indo-Pacific strategy all express concern over and support for cross-strait peace and stability, demonstrating that the issue has become a matter of international consensus and interest.
Upholding the spirit of integrated diplomacy, Taiwan will continue to strengthen collaboration with France and other democratic partners to jointly defend freedom and democracy and safeguard peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific.
Source: United States Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn)
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) delivered remarks on the Senate floor slamming Democrats for obstructing the voting process on President Trump’s nominees, his efforts to enforce our immigration laws and secure the border, and his America First policies in the courts:
Click hereto download Senator Blackburn’s remarks on the Senate floor.
REMARKS AS PREPARED
While Republicans Work to Deliver Wins for the American People, Democrats Are Obstructing President Trump’s Agenda
In November, President Trump and Republicans received a powerful mandate from the American people to secure our border, strengthen our economy, rein in wasteful spending, and Make America Great Again.
By passing the One Big Beautiful Bill, we delivered on this mandate by securing…
The largest tax cut in U.S. history—including reduced taxes on tips and overtime, a $6,000 bonus deduction for seniors, and the permanent extension of President Trump’s 2017 tax cuts;
It also reduces the burden of the death tax for millions, providing critical relief for family-owned businesses and farmers;
It bolsters our Armed Forces with a $150 billion increase in military spending;
It provides the largest-ever investment in border security so that we can complete the border wall and hire thousands of new Border Patrol Agents;
It strengthens Medicaid by rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in the program;
It restores fiscal sanity by eliminating hundreds of billions of dollars in far-left spending;
And it accomplishes so much more.
These are huge wins for the American people. But our work is far from finished.
Democrats Are Hurting Americans by Obstructing President Trump’s Nominees
At the top of the list: confirming President Trump’s nominees.
The President deserves to have his team in place to enact his America First agenda.
But instead of working with us to carry out the will of the American people, our colleagues across the aisle have chosen to obstruct at any cost.
Right now, we have 135 pending nominations in the Senate.
There is absolutely zero reason we should have this backlog—especially with such important nominations:
U.S. ambassadorships to the Vatican, the Netherlands, Chile, Greece, and the European Union;
Seven federal judgeships;
U.S. Attorneys;
Under Secretaries for the Departments of Veterans Affairs and the Navy;
The Commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission;
And much more.
Democrats, however, are trying to slow down the voting process on these qualified nominees as much as possible.
They’re losing at the ballot box, in the halls of Congress, and in the courts—so stalling is all they have left to spite the President.
They might think that they are hurting Republicans. In reality, they are hurting the American people.
Every single day that goes by with stalled nomination votes is another day that these qualified nominees are unable to get to work on behalf of our country.
Democrats’ Obstruction Is Nothing New – Recent Disclosures Show Obama Manufactured Russia Collusion Hoax to Derail President Trump
Unfortunately, this obstruction is nothing new.
With the recent disclosures from Director of National Intelligence Gabbard, we are learning even more about how President Obama and Democrats manufactured the Russia Hoax to try to derail President Trump’s first term.
Activist Judges Have Blocked Lawful Orders from President Trump in Attempts to Obstruct His Agenda
For months, far-left activist judges undermined our Constitution by blocking lawful orders from the Trump administration in a brazen effort to decide nationwide policy.
Their abuse of power only came to an end when the Supreme Court reined in the use of nationwide injunctions.
Democrats Have Obstructed ICE Agents from Enforcing Immigration Law
And more recently, we’ve seen Democrats try their best to obstruct a core part of the America First agenda: Securing our border.
Americans want our border to be secure. And they want criminal illegal aliens removed from their communities.
Across the country, ICE and Border Patrol agents have been hard at work carrying out this mandate and arresting criminals who have no right to be in our country.
Yet Democrats are working to vilify and undermine our brave federal law enforcement.
We’ve seen congressional Democrats try to storm ICE facilities—including a House member who faces federal charges for assaulting an ICE officer.
They’ve smeared ICE agents who are risking their lives to protect our country, comparing them to “secret police” and the Nazis.
They’ve pushed legislation that would prohibit officers from wearing masks, exposing them and their families to targeted harassment.
This is all happening as ICE officers face an 830 percent surge in assaults.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi departed for the Maldives on Thursday, concluding the first leg of his two-nation tour. He is visiting the Maldives at the invitation of President Mohamed Muizzu from July 25 to 26.
During his visit, the Prime Minister will participate as the Guest of Honour at the 60th Independence Day celebrations of the Maldives. His visit also marks the 60th anniversary of India-Maldives diplomatic relations.
Earlier, Prime Minister Modi concluded a successful visit to the United Kingdom, where he met with his UK counterpart, Prime Minister Keir Starmer, at Chequers, the official country residence of the British Prime Minister. Both leaders welcomed the signing of the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which is expected to enhance bilateral trade, investment, and job creation.
They also agreed to negotiate a Double Contribution Convention to ease cross-border business and boost competitiveness in the service sector.
The two sides adopted the India-UK Vision 2035, aimed at guiding the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership over the next decade in sectors including technology, education, defence, and climate action.
The leaders finalised a Defence Industrial Roadmap to strengthen cooperation in co-design, co-development, and co-production of defence products. They also discussed enhanced collaboration under the Technology and Security Initiative, covering areas such as telecom, critical minerals, semiconductors, and biotechnology.
PM Modi and PM Starmer welcomed the growing education partnership under India’s New Education Policy (NEP), with six UK universities planning to establish campuses in India. The University of Southampton has already inaugurated its campus in Gurugram.
Prime Minister Modi thanked the UK for its support following the Pahalgam terror attack and reiterated the need for strong action against extremism. He also sought cooperation in bringing back economic fugitives facing legal action in India.
Global and regional developments, including the Indo-Pacific, West Asia, and the Russia-Ukraine conflict, were also discussed. PM Modi extended an invitation to Prime Minister Starmer to visit India at a mutually convenient time.
Following his meeting with the UK Prime Minister, PM Modi called on His Majesty King Charles III at Sandringham Estate. The two leaders discussed shared interests in health, sustainability, and climate change. The Prime Minister presented a sapling under the ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam’ campaign to be planted in the estate during the upcoming season.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday expressed grief over the loss of lives in the tragic plane crash in Russia and offered his condolences to the families of the victims.
In a statement shared on X, PM Modi wrote, “Deeply saddened at the loss of lives in the tragic plane crash in Russia. Extend our deepest condolences to the families of the victims. We stand in solidarity with Russia and its people.”
His remarks came after a Russian An-24 aircraft, carrying 49 people including five children and six crew members, crashed in the mountainous Amur region on Thursday, killing all on board, according to local media reports.
The ill-fated flight, operated by the Siberia-based Angara Airlines, had departed from Blagoveshchensk and was en route to Tynda, near the Russia-China border, when it lost contact with air traffic controllers shortly before its scheduled landing.
According to Russia’s state news agency TASS, the aircraft reportedly caught fire mid-air and vanished from radar. Rescue helicopters later located the burning wreckage on a remote mountainside, approximately 16 kilometres from Tynda.
Officials from the Amur Centre for Civil Defence and Fire Safety confirmed that “no survivors were found when a Mi-8 search helicopter flew over the crash site.”
“The aircraft caught fire upon crashing,” a spokesperson said. “Rescue operations have been hampered by the extremely difficult terrain, as the crash site lies on a steep, inaccessible slope.”
The region’s dense taiga forests and swampy landscape further complicated rescue efforts.
Notably, the aircraft did not send any distress signals before disappearing, raising concerns over the cause of the incident.
Preliminary reports suggest the An-24 may have been attempting a second approach to land at Tynda Airport when it went off the radar.
A Rosaviatsia aircraft and multiple rescue teams were immediately dispatched after receiving the alert. Investigators from the Far Eastern Transport Prosecutor’s Office have launched a probe into the crash.
The cause of the accident remains unknown. Officials are expected to begin ground-based recovery operations and retrieve the black box once access to the site is possible.
KOŠICE, Slovakia, July 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Remittix, the new DeFi and low-gas-fee crypto innovation powerhouse, is unveiling the beta release timeline of its highly anticipated multi-chain crypto wallet, which will roll out in Q3 2025, in an exciting race to transform cross-border transactions.
In terms of accessibility, speed, and cost reductions for users worldwide, the Remittix Wallet will facilitate smooth interoperability with Ethereum, Solana, and other EVM chains – a significant advancement.
As the launch looms, enthusiasm among investors is sky high. Remittix token presale now stands at a remarkable $17 million, with over 563 million tokens sold to date. This momentum positions Remittix in the pole position for the next crypto breakout of 2025.
Seamless Multi-Chain Wallet Solution
The Beta Remittix Wallet has only one objective: easy global crypto transactions. From transferring stablecoins on Ethereum to staking SOL, and even token management between networks, the wallet presents industry-leading performance with very low gas fees.
Remittix Wallet beta release will allow early customers to:
Store, send, and receive tokens on Ethereum and Solana
This wallet is just part of Remittix’s broader ecosystem, hoping to disrupt the old remittance paradigm with fast, low-cost transactions that legacy platforms still can’t get right.
As more and more hype is building up for Cardano, Solana, and other higher-layer protocols, Remittix is moving in its own direction as a cross-chain DeFi utility with a laser-sharp focus on building markets. Its momentum is copying the early-stage signs of breakout tokens like ADA and SOL.
Bridging Crypto and Fiat in Real-World Economies
Beyond wallet capabilities, Remittix is building out infrastructure to connect the realm of decentralized finance to real-world economies on the planet with seamless fiat-to-crypto solutions.
While not included in the beta release, future versions of the Remittix Wallet will be built to allow users—especially in high-fee remittance regions—to exchange crypto directly into local currency.
This will enable users to:
Send USDT or other stablecoins cross-border
Have recipients cash them out with local partners
Reduce transaction fees on top of legacy banking infrastructure
Use real-world utility for daily spending and commercial use
The long-term vision is to give underbanked users in Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America access to fast, low-cost financial services without relying on outdated intermediaries.
How to Join the Remittix Presale
Crypto enthusiasts, traders, and DeFi supporters are not left out; they can all join the ongoing Remittix presale by visiting the official website. All participants get to enjoy early access to wallet features, bonus token redemption and a chance at the $250,000 Giveaway – a feature headline draw that gains thousands of users daily.
About Remittix
Remittix is a decentralized finance platform with a particular focus on low-gas-fee crypto cross-border payments, staking, and remittances. Through its utility token and multi-chain wallet infrastructure, Remittix seeks to make crypto faster, more inclusive, and more accessible to users all over the world.
Disclaimer:This content is provided byRemittix. The statements, views, and opinions expressed in this content are solely those of the content provider and do not necessarily reflect the views of this media platform or its publisher. We do not endorse, verify, or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any information presented.We do not guarantee any claims, statements, or promises made in this article.This content is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial, investment, or trading advice. Investing in crypto and mining-related opportunities involves significant risks, including the potential loss of capital.It is possible to lose all your capital. These products may not be suitable for everyone, and you should ensure that you understand the risks involved. Seek independent advice if necessary. Speculate only with funds that you can afford to lose.Readers are strongly encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions. However, due to the inherently speculative nature of the blockchain sector—including cryptocurrency, NFTs, and mining—complete accuracy cannot always be guaranteed. Neither the media platform nor the publisher shall be held responsible for any fraudulent activities, misrepresentations, or financial losses arising from the content of this press release.In the event of any legal claims or charges against this article, we accept no liability or responsibility. Globenewswire does not endorse any content on this page.
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Source: United States Senator for Arkansas – John Boozman
WASHINGTON—U.S. Senator John Boozman (R-AR), along with Senators Raphael Warnock (D-GA), Susan Collins (R-ME) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), introduced the bipartisan Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act to increase the number of Medicare-supported doctor training slots available for medical students and address the shortage of primary and specialty care physicians in Arkansas and across the country.
“There is an urgent, demonstrated need to strengthen our health care system by combating the alarming shortage of providers, particularly in rural areas,” said Boozman. “Lifting the outdated cap on residency positions supported by Medicare can expand the supply of physicians while helping ensure access to quality care and treatment in more communities nationwide. I am proud to work in a bipartisan way on this important medical workforce solution that also supports better health outcomes.”
“Our state faces a critical shortage of primary care and specialty physicians, preventing many Georgians from accessing health care services in their community,” said Warnock. “Where you live shouldn’t determine the type of medical care you receive, and I will not stop working to help our hospitals hire and retain the health care workforce that Georgians deserve.”
“In the face of growing demand for medical treatments and services, our country continues to struggle with a shortage of trained physicians. It is critical that we bridge the gap,” said Collins. “This bipartisan legislation would support training opportunities needed to alleviate the physician shortage and improve access to health care, particularly in rural or underserved communities, which in turn promotes healthier lives.”
“The physician shortage in New York and across the country drastically impedes our hospitals from delivering good, quality care, leading to longer wait times and putting more strain on a healthcare system that’s already stretched thin,” said Leader Schumer. “This bipartisan legislation would expand training supported by Medicare and help ensure our communities have access to primary care and specialty physicians when they need it.”
The U.S. faces a projected shortage of up to 86,000 physicians by 2036, including up to 40,000 primary care doctors and as many as 20,000 surgical specialists. In 2023, around one-quarter of Arkansas’s medical residencies were not Medicare-supported Graduate Medical Education (GME) slots. Funding residencies independently is extremely costly to rural hospitals already struggling to attract and support physicians.
Specifically, the Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act addresses the growing physician workforce shortage by:
Raising the number of residency program positions that Medicare can fund by 14,000 over seven years; and
Prioritizing positions for states with hospitals located in rural areas, new medical schools, hospitals training physicians in excess of their cap as well as hospitals that serve areas designated as health professional shortage areas (HPSAs).
Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Angus King (I-ME), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Peter Welch (D-VT), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) have cosponsored the bill.
This measure builds upon Boozman’s continued efforts to champion health care in The Natural State. In March, Boozman introduced the Physicians for Underserved Areas Act to prioritize placement of available medical residency spots in rural and underserved areas, as well as the Resident Education Deferred Interest (REDI) Act to ease financial burdens on medical professionals completing their medical training.
The bill is supported by the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), National Rural Health Association (NRHA), American Medical Association (AMA) and the Greater New York Hospital Association.
“The Association of American Medical Colleges applauds Senators Boozman, Warnock, Collins, Schumer, Gillibrand, Rosen, Klobuchar, King, Gallego, Welch, Slotkin, and Durbin for championing this important bipartisan legislation that would expand federal investment in physician training,” said AAMC President and CEO David J. Skorton, M.D. “With the nation facing a persistent physician shortage, this bipartisan bill would enhance and build on the investments academic health systems are making to strengthen the physician workforce by increasing Medicare support for physician training. We look forward to working with the Senate to advance this critical legislation and help ensure that patients across the country have access to timely, high-quality health care they deserve.”
“The National Rural Health Association is proud to support the Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act and thanks Senator Boozman and Senator Warnock for their work to introduce this bill. Rural communities continue to experience a chronic lack of physicians and these shortages are only projected to grow,” said NRHA CEO Alan Morgan. “This important legislation is a huge step towards recruiting and training more physicians in rural areas and ensuring that all rural residents have access to care. We look forward to continuing to work with the senators to pass this bill and find sustainable solutions to rural workforce issues.”
“The American Medical Association commends Sens. John Boozman and Raphael Warnock for introducing this crucial bipartisan legislation that aims to address the physician shortage and resulting access challenges for patients,” said AMA President Bobby Mukkamala, M.D. “By expanding federal support for graduate medical education over the next seven years, Congress is taking a critical step toward ensuring patients nationwide have access to well-trained physicians in their communities.”
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments 3
Speech
The United Kingdom welcomes the efforts of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to strengthen its role in conflict prevention: UK statement at the UN Security Council
Statement by Ambassador Barbara Woodward, UK Permanent Representative to the UN, at the UN Security Council open debate on maintaining international peace and security.
I welcome the opportunity today to discuss the OIC’s important cooperation with the UN on the resolution of conflicts and securing lasting peace and prosperity.
I will make three points, President.
First, the United Kingdom welcomes the efforts of the OIC to strengthen its role in conflict prevention, confidence-building, peacekeeping and mediation.
In particular, we thank OIC members for their invaluable commitment of troops to UN Peacekeeping Operations.
Effective cooperation and sharing of information between the UN and the OIC is important for developing coherent strategies for conflict prevention to support national prevention efforts.
Second, the United Kingdom values the role of the OIC and its Member States as a key partner in our shared fight against terrorism and violent extremism.
This requires a multi-dimensional approach with the support of all relevant UN agencies, regional organisations, governments and civil society partners.
We encourage the UN and the OIC to maintain close coordination to ensure the protection of human rights while countering terrorism.
Third, the United Kingdom welcomes its broadening and deepening relationship with the OIC and its members, including this week hosting the OIC’s International Academy of Jurisprudence to strengthen collaboration on key issues and interfaith dialogue.
We value this collaboration not least because inclusive governance and respect for human rights are fundamental underpinnings of peace and prosperity. And the United Kingdom firmly believes the right to freedom of religion or belief has a crucial role to play in this regard.
Religious intolerance and persecution fuel instability, impeding both conflict prevention and resolution, as we sadly see in a number of the conflicts on this Council’s agenda.
That is why the United Kingdom was proud to co-pen Security Council resolution 2686 with the United Arab Emirates in 2023. This was the first time a Security Council resolution had directly addressed the persecution of religious minorities in conflict settings. We remain committed to the full implementation of resolution 2686.
In conclusion, President, when freedom of religion or belief is respected for all, and interreligious dialogue is promoted, we can build trust and understanding between communities, helping to secure sustainable peace.
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments
Press release
PM statement on Gaza: 24 July 2025
Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s statement on Gaza.
The suffering and starvation unfolding in Gaza is unspeakable and indefensible. While the situation has been grave for some time, it has reached new depths and continues to worsen. We are witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe.
I will hold an emergency call with E3 partners tomorrow, where we will discuss what we can do urgently to stop the killing and get people the food they desperately need while pulling together all the steps necessary to build a lasting peace. We all agree on the pressing need for Israel to change course and allow the aid that is desperately needed to enter Gaza without delay.
It is hard to see a hopeful future in such dark times. But I must reiterate my call for all sides to engage in good faith, and at pace, to bring about an immediate ceasefire and for Hamas to unconditionally release all hostages. We strongly support the efforts of the US, Qatar and Egypt to secure this.
We are clear that statehood is the inalienable right of the Palestinian people. A ceasefire will put us on a path to the recognition of a Palestinian state and a two-state solution which guarantees peace and security for Palestinians and Israelis.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
VICTORIA FALLS, ZIMBABWE, July 24 (Xinhua) — Nine more Chinese cities were accredited as international wetland cities on Thursday at the opening of the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (COP15) in the Zimbabwean resort town of Victoria Falls, bringing the total number of such cities in China to 22, the highest in the world.
The newly accredited cities include Chongming in Shanghai, Dali in Yunnan Province, Fuzhou in Fujian Province, Hangzhou in Zhejiang Province, Jiujiang in Jiangxi Province, Lhasa in the Xizang Autonomous Region, Suzhou in Jiangsu Province, Wenzhou in Zhejiang Province and Yueyang in Hunan Province. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BISHKEK, July 24 (Xinhua) — Presidents of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov and Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev held a telephone conversation on Thursday, during which the sides expressed their readiness to continue deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries, the press service of the Kyrgyz president reported.
As noted in the Telegram channel of the President of Kyrgyzstan, during the conversation, the heads of state discussed current issues of bilateral cooperation and “expressed mutual readiness to further deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership based on the principles of good neighborliness, mutual understanding and support.”
S. Japarov congratulated Sh. Mirziyoyev on his birthday, wishing the President of Uzbekistan “good health, longevity, inexhaustible energy and further success in state activities for the benefit of the development and prosperity of the brotherly Uzbek people.” –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, July 24 (Xinhua) — Several regions in northern China were put on flood alert on Thursday, with weather forecasts predicting heavy rainfall in the coming days.
The Beijing People’s Government raised the rainfall alert level to yellow, the third-highest in a four-tier system, and launched a citywide flood emergency response.
The Haihe River Flood and Drought Control Headquarters and Water Resources Committee in neighboring Tianjin Municipality issued Level 4 flood emergency response and emergency protection modes at 3:00 p.m. Moderate to heavy rainfall in the Haihe River basin is expected to cause water levels in the main river and tributaries to rise from July 24 to 26.
Earlier in the day, the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region raised its meteorological emergency response for heavy rainfall from Level 4 to Level 3. Rainfall of over 100 mm and up to 180 mm in some parts of the region is forecast, accompanied by thunderstorms and squalls.
Northeast China’s Jilin Province issued a Level 4 drought and flood alert at 4 p.m. Heavy rainfall could hit central and western parts of the province, creating an increased risk of flooding and inundation in some cities and several rivers.
At 3:00 p.m., a Level 4 flood alert was also issued in key cities in Hebei Province, with heavy rain and downpours expected overnight.
The authorities of the abovementioned regions have instructed the relevant departments to strengthen monitoring and forecasting, issue timely warnings, intensify inspections of dams and reservoirs, and take effective measures to ensure the safety of citizens’ lives and property. The population is advised to remain vigilant in relation to possible secondary disasters caused by extreme weather. –0–
Please note: This information is raw content obtained directly from the source of the information. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Operation Grayskull Eradicated Four Dark Web Child Abuse Sites and Led to the Convictions of 18 Offenders to Date, Who Have Collectively Received More than 300 Years in Prison
Today, the Justice Department announced the results of Operation Grayskull, a highly successful joint effort between the Department of Justice and the FBI that resulted in the dismantling of four dark web sites dedicated to images and videos containing child sexual abuse material (CSAM). To date, the operation has led to the convictions of 18 offenders, including a Minnesota man who was sentenced yesterday to 250 months in prison and lifetime supervised release for his involvement with one of these dark web sites. He was also ordered to pay $23,000 in restitution.
“Today’s announcement sends a clear warning to those who exploit and abuse children: you will not find safe haven, even on the dark web,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “These offenders thought that they could act without consequences, but they were wrong. Thanks to the relentless determination of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners we have exposed these perpetrators for who they are, eliminated their websites and brought justice to countless victims.”
“This operation represents one of the most significant strikes ever made against online child exploitation networks,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “We’ve not only dismantled dangerous platforms on the dark web, but we’ve also brought key perpetrators to justice and delivered a powerful message: you cannot hide behind anonymity to harm children.”
“Yesterday’s sentencing reaffirms our steadfast commitment to protecting our children, the most vulnerable among us, from those who exploit and harm them through the despicable trade in child sexual abuse material,” said U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne for the Southern District of Florida. “Thomas Peter Katsampes and his co-conspirators ran some of the darkweb’s most heinous networks, enabling horrific crimes against innocent victims, but Operation Grayskull has shut these sites down and delivered justice. We applaud the FBI and our international partners for their tireless work, and let this be a clear warning: we will relentlessly pursue and prosecute anyone engaged in such atrocities, no matter how they attempt to cover their tracks.”
Thomas Peter Katsampes, 52, of Eagan, Minnesota, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise and conspiracy to distribute child pornography on Feb. 27. According to court documents, Katsampes joined a dark web site dedicated to CSAM in 2022, advertised and distributed CSAM over the website, including CSAM depicting prepubescent children, and eventually worked his way up to a staff position on the web site, which, among other things, involved moderating the site, enforcing the site’s rules for posting CSAM, and advising the site’s users about how to post CSAM.
In addition to Katsampes, eight individuals have been convicted and sentenced in the Southern District of Florida for their involvement in running the primary site targeted by Operation Grayskull.
Defendant
Residence
Case Status
Selwyn David Rosenstein
Boynton Beach, Florida
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography, five counts of advertisement of child pornography, and possession of child pornography.
Sentenced on Dec. 12, 2022, to 28 years in prison and ordered to pay $80,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Matthew Branden Garrell
Raleigh, North Carolina
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography.
Sentenced on Aug. 1, 2023, to 20 years and 10 months in prison and ordered to pay $158,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Robert Preston Boyles
Clarksville, Tennessee
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography.
Sentenced on Aug. 15, 2023, to 23 years and four months in prison and ordered to pay $7,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Gregory Malcolm Good
Silver Springs, Nevada
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography.
Sentenced on Aug. 22, 2023, to 25 years and 10 months in prison and ordered to pay $93,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
William Michael Spearman
Madison, Alabama
Pleaded guilty to engaging in a child exploitation enterprise.
Sentenced on Jan. 23, 2024, to life in prison and ordered to pay $123,400 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Joseph Addison Martin
Tahuya, Washington
Pleaded guilty to engaging in a child exploitation enterprise.
Sentenced on April 18, 2024, to 42 years in prison and ordered to pay $174,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Joseph Robert Stewart
Milton, Washington
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography.
Sentenced on April 18, 2024, to 23 years and 9 months in prison and ordered to pay $19,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Keith David McIntosh
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography, both as a person with a prior conviction for possession of child pornography.
Sentenced on Dec. 19, 2024, to 55 years in prison.
The website’s leaders advertised and distributed CSAM, promulgated rules for the website, enforced the rules by banning or scolding users who violated them, held staff meetings, recruited members to serve as staff members, recommended users for promotion, edited and deleted user posts, praised individuals for participating in and contributing to the website, kept records of CSAM posts made by individual members, and paid for and maintained the website servers, among other things.
Operation Grayskull resulted in the dismantling of a total of four sites dedicated to images and videos depicting child sexual abuse. These websites were some of the most egregious on the dark web, and they included sections specifically dedicated to infants and toddlers, as well as depictions of violence, sadism, and torture. The websites also contained detailed advice on how to avoid detection by law enforcement – for example, by using sophisticated technologies.
In other judicial districts around the country, nine additional individuals have been convicted for their involvement with these websites, including the following:
Charles Hand, of Aberdeen, Maryland, was prosecuted in the District of Maryland and was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison;
Michael Ibarra, of Wenatchee, Washington, was prosecuted in the Eastern District of Washington and was sentenced to 12 years in prison;
Clay Trimble, of Fordyce, Arkansas, was prosecuted in the Eastern District of Arkansas and was sentenced to 18 years in prison;
David Craig, of Houston, Texas, was prosecuted in the Southern District of Texas and was sentenced to nine years in prison;
Robert Rella of Chesapeake, Virginia, was prosecuted in the Eastern District of Virginia and was sentenced to five years and eight months in prison;
Samuel Hicks, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, was prosecuted in the Northern District of Indiana and was sentenced to 16 years in prison;
Richard Smith of Dallas, Texas, was prosecuted in the Eastern District of Texas and was sentenced to 14 years in prison;
Patrick Harrison, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, was prosecuted in the Western District of Michigan and was sentenced to five years and ten months in prison.
Thomas Gailus, of Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, was prosecuted in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, and his sentencing is pending.
Two other individuals in the United States died before being charged for their involvement with the websites. The operation also resulted in arrests in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Estonia, Belgium, and South Africa.
The FBI’s Child Exploitation Operational Unit and Miami Field Office, West Palm Beach Resident Agency investigated the cases.
Acting Deputy Chief Kyle P. Reynolds and Trial Attorney William G. Clayman of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Schiller of the Southern District of Florida coordinated the operation and prosecuted the defendants in the Southern District of Florida.
Substantial assistance for the cases prosected in the Southern District of Florida was provided by FBI Field Offices and Resident Agencies in Huntsville, Alabama; Reno, Nevada; Clarksville, Tennessee; Raleigh, North Carolina; Madison, Wisconsin; Tacoma, Washington; Grand Rapids, Michigan; and Minneapolis, Minnesota; CEOS’s High Technology Investigative Unit; and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Northern District of Alabama, District of Nevada, Middle District of Tennessee, Eastern District of North Carolina, Western District of Wisconsin, Western District of Washington, Western District of Michigan, and District of Minnesota.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Operation Grayskull Eradicated Four Dark Web Child Abuse Sites and Led to the Convictions of 18 Offenders to Date, Who Have Collectively Received More than 300 Years in Prison
Today, the Justice Department announced the results of Operation Grayskull, a highly successful joint effort between the Department of Justice and the FBI that resulted in the dismantling of four dark web sites dedicated to images and videos containing child sexual abuse material (CSAM). To date, the operation has led to the convictions of 18 offenders, including a Minnesota man who was sentenced yesterday to 250 months in prison and lifetime supervised release for his involvement with one of these dark web sites. He was also ordered to pay $23,000 in restitution.
“Today’s announcement sends a clear warning to those who exploit and abuse children: you will not find safe haven, even on the dark web,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. “These offenders thought that they could act without consequences, but they were wrong. Thanks to the relentless determination of our prosecutors and law enforcement partners we have exposed these perpetrators for who they are, eliminated their websites and brought justice to countless victims.”
“This operation represents one of the most significant strikes ever made against online child exploitation networks,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “We’ve not only dismantled dangerous platforms on the dark web, but we’ve also brought key perpetrators to justice and delivered a powerful message: you cannot hide behind anonymity to harm children.”
“Yesterday’s sentencing reaffirms our steadfast commitment to protecting our children, the most vulnerable among us, from those who exploit and harm them through the despicable trade in child sexual abuse material,” said U.S. Attorney Hayden P. O’Byrne for the Southern District of Florida. “Thomas Peter Katsampes and his co-conspirators ran some of the darkweb’s most heinous networks, enabling horrific crimes against innocent victims, but Operation Grayskull has shut these sites down and delivered justice. We applaud the FBI and our international partners for their tireless work, and let this be a clear warning: we will relentlessly pursue and prosecute anyone engaged in such atrocities, no matter how they attempt to cover their tracks.”
Thomas Peter Katsampes, 52, of Eagan, Minnesota, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise and conspiracy to distribute child pornography on Feb. 27. According to court documents, Katsampes joined a dark web site dedicated to CSAM in 2022, advertised and distributed CSAM over the website, including CSAM depicting prepubescent children, and eventually worked his way up to a staff position on the web site, which, among other things, involved moderating the site, enforcing the site’s rules for posting CSAM, and advising the site’s users about how to post CSAM.
In addition to Katsampes, eight individuals have been convicted and sentenced in the Southern District of Florida for their involvement in running the primary site targeted by Operation Grayskull.
Defendant
Residence
Case Status
Selwyn David Rosenstein
Boynton Beach, Florida
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography, five counts of advertisement of child pornography, and possession of child pornography.
Sentenced on Dec. 12, 2022, to 28 years in prison and ordered to pay $80,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Matthew Branden Garrell
Raleigh, North Carolina
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography.
Sentenced on Aug. 1, 2023, to 20 years and 10 months in prison and ordered to pay $158,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Robert Preston Boyles
Clarksville, Tennessee
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography.
Sentenced on Aug. 15, 2023, to 23 years and four months in prison and ordered to pay $7,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Gregory Malcolm Good
Silver Springs, Nevada
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography.
Sentenced on Aug. 22, 2023, to 25 years and 10 months in prison and ordered to pay $93,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
William Michael Spearman
Madison, Alabama
Pleaded guilty to engaging in a child exploitation enterprise.
Sentenced on Jan. 23, 2024, to life in prison and ordered to pay $123,400 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Joseph Addison Martin
Tahuya, Washington
Pleaded guilty to engaging in a child exploitation enterprise.
Sentenced on April 18, 2024, to 42 years in prison and ordered to pay $174,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Joseph Robert Stewart
Milton, Washington
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography.
Sentenced on April 18, 2024, to 23 years and 9 months in prison and ordered to pay $19,500 in restitution to victims of his offense.
Keith David McIntosh
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Pleaded guilty to conspiracy to advertise child pornography and conspiracy to distribute child pornography, both as a person with a prior conviction for possession of child pornography.
Sentenced on Dec. 19, 2024, to 55 years in prison.
The website’s leaders advertised and distributed CSAM, promulgated rules for the website, enforced the rules by banning or scolding users who violated them, held staff meetings, recruited members to serve as staff members, recommended users for promotion, edited and deleted user posts, praised individuals for participating in and contributing to the website, kept records of CSAM posts made by individual members, and paid for and maintained the website servers, among other things.
Operation Grayskull resulted in the dismantling of a total of four sites dedicated to images and videos depicting child sexual abuse. These websites were some of the most egregious on the dark web, and they included sections specifically dedicated to infants and toddlers, as well as depictions of violence, sadism, and torture. The websites also contained detailed advice on how to avoid detection by law enforcement – for example, by using sophisticated technologies.
In other judicial districts around the country, nine additional individuals have been convicted for their involvement with these websites, including the following:
Charles Hand, of Aberdeen, Maryland, was prosecuted in the District of Maryland and was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison;
Michael Ibarra, of Wenatchee, Washington, was prosecuted in the Eastern District of Washington and was sentenced to 12 years in prison;
Clay Trimble, of Fordyce, Arkansas, was prosecuted in the Eastern District of Arkansas and was sentenced to 18 years in prison;
David Craig, of Houston, Texas, was prosecuted in the Southern District of Texas and was sentenced to nine years in prison;
Robert Rella of Chesapeake, Virginia, was prosecuted in the Eastern District of Virginia and was sentenced to five years and eight months in prison;
Samuel Hicks, of Fort Wayne, Indiana, was prosecuted in the Northern District of Indiana and was sentenced to 16 years in prison;
Richard Smith of Dallas, Texas, was prosecuted in the Eastern District of Texas and was sentenced to 14 years in prison;
Patrick Harrison, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, was prosecuted in the Western District of Michigan and was sentenced to five years and ten months in prison.
Thomas Gailus, of Webbers Falls, Oklahoma, was prosecuted in the Eastern District of Oklahoma, and his sentencing is pending.
Two other individuals in the United States died before being charged for their involvement with the websites. The operation also resulted in arrests in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Italy, Germany, Estonia, Belgium, and South Africa.
The FBI’s Child Exploitation Operational Unit and Miami Field Office, West Palm Beach Resident Agency investigated the cases.
Acting Deputy Chief Kyle P. Reynolds and Trial Attorney William G. Clayman of the Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Schiller of the Southern District of Florida coordinated the operation and prosecuted the defendants in the Southern District of Florida.
Substantial assistance for the cases prosected in the Southern District of Florida was provided by FBI Field Offices and Resident Agencies in Huntsville, Alabama; Reno, Nevada; Clarksville, Tennessee; Raleigh, North Carolina; Madison, Wisconsin; Tacoma, Washington; Grand Rapids, Michigan; and Minneapolis, Minnesota; CEOS’s High Technology Investigative Unit; and the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Northern District of Alabama, District of Nevada, Middle District of Tennessee, Eastern District of North Carolina, Western District of Wisconsin, Western District of Washington, Western District of Michigan, and District of Minnesota.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi called on His Majesty King Charles III at Sandringham Estate, the summer residence of the British monarch, during his visit to the United Kingdom.
During the meeting, Prime Minister Modi conveyed his happiness over the recovery of His Majesty’s health and the resumption of his royal duties. The two leaders held discussions on a range of issues including health, sustainable living, and traditional practices such as Ayurveda and Yoga. Both sides expressed interest in promoting these practices for the benefit of people around the world.
Bilateral relations between India and the United Kingdom also featured in the talks. The leaders noted that the recent signing of the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) would bring new momentum to the partnership. The Prime Minister briefed His Majesty on the progress made by India in the field of renewable energy, with a focus on sustainable development.
Discussions also covered areas of cooperation on climate change and sustainability, and both leaders reiterated their shared commitment to working together towards a greener future. The two also explored ways to strengthen collaboration within the framework of the Commonwealth.
Prime Minister Modi thanked His Majesty for joining the “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam” campaign and presented him with a sapling, which will be planted at Sandringham Estate during the upcoming autumn planting season.
WASHINGTON, July 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — EB5 Capital is pleased to announce the closing of its $42.4 million investment in Woodfield Development’s Atlanta Woodrow Apartments (JF41) project.
Located in Atlanta, Georgia, the high-unemployment Target Employment Area (TEA) project is a Class A multifamily development featuring 300 units across four modern apartment buildings and 25 townhomes. The development will include expansive amenity space, including a resort-caliber pool and lounge, commercial-quality fitness center, and vibrant gaming courtyard, all complemented by top-of-market interiors and finishes.
Considered a significant tech hub and corporate city, Atlanta is home to many major companies including UPS, Coca-Cola, Delta Airlines, Home Depot, and CNN. JF41 is situated in the South Atlanta submarket, a rapidly developing area near downtown. The location offers convenient access to several major transportation routes and is only ten miles from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world’s busiest airport.
“This project is a great example of how the EB-5 Program helps redevelop communities,” said Jonathan Mullen, EB5 Capital’s Senior Vice President of Investments. “We’re proud to be part of a project that will bring over 900 new jobs to a high-unemployment area and contribute to the continued growth of the South Atlanta region.”
JF41 marks EB5 Capital’s 21st multifamily investment and second project in the state of Georgia. Construction is expected to start in Q3 2025 and reach completion in Q1 2027.
About EB5 Capital
EB5 Capital provides qualified foreign investors opportunities to invest in job-creating commercial real estate projects under the United States Immigrant Investor Program (EB-5 Visa Program). As one of the country’s oldest and most active Regional Center operators, the firm has raised more than one billion dollars of foreign capital across over 45 EB-5 projects. Headquartered in Washington, DC, EB5 Capital’s distinguished track record and leadership in the industry has attracted investors from over 75 countries. Please visitwww.eb5capital.comfor more information.
We are living in an age of anxiety. People face multiple existential crises such as climate change and conflicts that could potentially escalate into nuclear war.
So how do people cope with competing threats like this? And what happens to climate anxiety when wars suddenly erupt and compete for our attention?
Climate change affects our physical and mental health, directly through extreme climate-related droughts, wildfires and intense storms. It also affects some people indirectly through so-called “climate anxiety”. This term covers a range of negative emotions and states, including not just anxiety, but worry and concern, hopelessness, anger, fear, grief and sadness.
A team of researchers led by Caroline Hickman from the University of Bath surveyed 10,000 children and young people (aged 16 to 25 years) in ten countries (Australia, Brazil, Finland, France, India, Nigeria, Philippines, Portugal, the UK and the US). They found that 45% of respondents said their feelings about climate change negatively affected their daily lives. It was worse for respondents from developing countries.
Climate anxiety can potentially serve a positive function. Anger, for example, can push people to act to help mitigate the effects of climate change.
But it can also lead to “eco-paralysis”, a feeling of being overwhelmed, inhibiting people from taking any effective action, affecting their sleep, work and study, as a result of them dwelling endlessly on the problem.
Climate anxiety is not included in the American Psychiatric Association’s authoritative guide to the diagnosis of mental disorders. In other words, it is not officially recognised as a mental disorder.
Some say this is a good thing. The author and Stanford academic Britt Wray wrote: “The last thing we want is to pathologise this moral emotion, which stems from an accurate understanding of the severity of our planetary health crisis.”
But if it is not officially recognised, will people take it seriously enough? Will they just dismiss people who suffer from it as “snowflakes” – too sensitive and too easily hurt by the hard realities of life. This is a major dilemma.
I explore how climate anxiety relates to other types of clinical anxiety in my recent book, Understanding Climate Anxiety, recognising that there are adaptive and non-adaptive forms of anxiety.
According to Steven Taylor, a clinical psychologist from the University of British Columbia, adaptive anxiety can “motivate climate activism, such as efforts to reduce one’s carbon footprint”. Maladaptive anxiety, however, may “take the form of anxious passivity”, he warned, where the person feels anxious but utterly helpless.
Identifying different types of climate anxiety, understanding their precursors and how they interact with personality is a major psychological challenge. Identifying ways of alleviating climate anxiety and making it more adaptive, and focused on possible climate mitigation, is a major societal challenge.
But there’s another important issue. Some global leaders, including Donald Trump, don’t believe in human-induced climate change, claiming it’s “one of the great scams”. He seems to view climate anxiety as an overblown reaction to propaganda pumped out by a biased media.
This can make the experience much worse for those who feel anxious but then having their feelings dismissed.
Some psychologists argue that climate anxiety can be a form of pre-traumatic stress disorder. This hypothesis arose from observations of climate scientists and their growing feelings of anger, distress, helplessness and depression as the climate situation has worsened.
In 2015, researchers devised a new clinical measure to assess pre-traumatic stress reactions using items found in the diagnostic and statistical manual for post-traumatic stress disorder, but now focused on the future rather than the past, asking about “repeated, disturbing dreams of a possible future stressful experience”, for example.
They tested Danish soldiers before their deployment in Afghanistan and found that “involuntary intrusive images and thoughts of possible future events … were experienced at the same level as post-traumatic stress reactions to past events before and during deployment”.
They also found that soldiers who experienced higher levels of pre-traumatic stress before deployment had an increased risk of post-traumatic stress disorder after their return from the war zone. Their hypervigilance primed their nervous system to react more strongly when anything untoward occurred.
This would suggest that we need to take stress reactions to future anticipated events such as climate change very seriously.
The crisis response
But how important is climate anxiety in the context of these other threats? Researchers assessed the emotional state and mental health of people aged 18 to 29 years in five countries (China, Portugal, South Africa, the US and UK) focusing on three global issues: climate change, an environmental disaster (the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan), and the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.
They found the strongest emotional engagement was with the ongoing wars, with climate change a close second, and the radiation leak third. The strongest emotional responses to the wars were concern, sadness, helplessness, disgust, outrage and anger. For climate change, the strongest responses were concern, sadness, helplessness, disappointment and anxiety.
All three crises made young people feel concerned, sad, and very importantly helpless, but climate change has this burning level of anxiety added into the bubbling mix.
It seems that climate anxiety still has this undiminished power regardless of all the other awful things that are currently happening in the world, and I suspect the stigma of being dismissed as “snowflakes” makes this particular fear response all the more unbearable.
Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?_
Geoff Beattie has received funding from the British Academy and the AHRC to investigate psychological barriers to climate change mitigation and the effects of climate change on emotional responses.
For the past few weeks the headlines about Gaza have focused on the hundreds of people who have been killed while queueing for food. The aid distribution system put in place in May, backed by the US and Israel and run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, has proved to be chaotic and allegedly resulted in violence, with both Israel Defense Forces personnel and armed Palestinian gangs blamed for killing about 1,000 people in the two months the new system has been operating.
Now the headlines are focusing on the growing number of people dying of starvation.
Harrowing reports from the Gaza Strip report almost daily on the children dying of malnutrition in hospitals and clinics that simply don’t have the food to keep them alive. Writing in the Guardian this week, a British volunteer surgeon working in one of Gaza’s hospitals, Nick Maynard, described patients who “deteriorate and die, not from their injuries, but because they are too malnourished to survive surgery”.
The UK and 27 other countries this week has condemned the “drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians” who are trying to get food and water. And yet, writes Simon Mabon, still the world’s leaders look on: “Most are apparently content to condemn – but little action has been taken.”
Mabon, a professor of international relations at Lancaster University, quotes the latest report from the IPC, which monitors food security in conflict situations. It estimates that 500,000 people in Gaza are considered to be facing “catastrophe”, while a further 1.1 million fall into the “emergency” risk category. Both categories anticipate a steadily rising death rate among civilians in Gaza.
So how can Israel’s allies apply pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to bring an end to the violence and allow Palestinian civilians access to the food, water and medical supplies they so desperately need?
Mabon canvasses a range of options. First of all, countries that have yet to recognise the state of Palestine can do so. It’s nonsense, Madon believes, to talk of a two-state solution – as the UK government does – when you haven’t actually recognised the second state in the equation.
Then they could stop selling arms to Israel. Many countries already have. But the US still issues export licenses for some weapons that are sold to Israel.
There are a plethora of other things world leaders could do to pressure Israel. Mabon recommends having a look at what the world did to isolate South Africa during the apartheid years, measures which eventually helped bring about meaningful change there.
As for Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister is reported to be considering an early election. In previous months this looked like a move freighted with jeopardy. An election loss brought on by a disenchanted electorate, heartbroken at the hostage situation and exhausted by the conflict, would probably mean having to face the charges of corruption which have hung over him for more than five years.
But recent polls have suggested a bump in popularity following his 12-day campaign against Iran. Netanyahu is nothing if not a clever political manipulator. But Brian Brivati, a professor of contemporary history and human rights at Kingston University, believes that to have a chance of winning, the prime minister will need to fight a campaign on three narratives of his government’s success: securing the release of the hostages, defeating Hamas and delivering regional security. “It is a tall order,” Brivati concludes.
Anyone following the situation in Gaza over the past 18 months will have encountered Francesca Albanese, the UN’s special rapporteur for Palestine’s occupied territories. For three years she has monitored the human rights situation in Gaza and the West Bank, delivering trenchant criticism of Israel’s conduct and those who, by their inaction – and sometimes contrivance – have enabled it.
Earlier this months, the US government imposed sanctions on Albanese, because – as US secretary of state Marco Rubio insisted – she has engaged with the International Criminal Court (also subject to US sanctions) “in efforts to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute nationals of the United States or Israel”. Also she has written “threatening letters to dozens of entities worldwide, including major American companies”.
Alvina Hoffman, an expert in diplomatic affairs and human rights at SOAS, University of London, explains what a special rapporteur does and why their work is so valuable in the defence of human rights.
To Istanbul, where delegations from Russia and Ukraine met yesterday for their third round of face-to-face talks. All 40 minutes of them. There was another agreement of prisoner swaps and the two sides decided to set up some working groups to look into various political, military and humanitarian issues – but online rather in person.
The brevity of the talks came as no surprise to Stefan Wolff. Wolff, an expert in international security at the University of Birmingham who has provided commentary for The Conversation throughout the conflict in Ukraine, points out that both sides remain wedded to their maximalist war aims. For Russia, this is for Ukraine to accept Russia’s annexation of Crimea and four provinces of eastern Ukraine, a ban on Ukraine’s membership of Nato and a much reduced military capacity. For Ukraine, it is getting their territory back and Russian acceptance of their national sovereignty, meaning it gets to determine for itself what alliances it seeks.
Donald Trump has told Vladimir Putin that, if there’s no ceasefire in 50 days, he’ll apply harsh secondary sanctions on the countries buying Russian oil and that he plans to supply Ukraine with American weapons (via Nato’s European member states, that is). Wolff believes both sides will now play the waiting game. They will calculate their next move after September 2, when the 50 days run out, and when they know more about what the US president plans to do.
Volodymyr Zelensky, meanwhile, faces pressure from his own people. There have been days of protest at his decision to bring two formerly independent anti-corruption organisations under the direct control of the government. He argues that this was necessary to prevent Russian infiltration, while critics are saying that the Ukrainian president has launched a power grab designed to prevent independent investigation of alleged corruption against people close to him.
Jenny Mathers says these protests, which involve people from all political shades, including people who have fought in the defence of Ukraine since 2022, some with visible injuries, represents a fracture of the “informal agreement between the government and society to show a united front to the world while the war continues”.
Ukrainians protest after Zelensky signs law clamping down on anticorruption agencies.
It’s not as if Zelensky is in clear and present danger of losing his job. His party holds a majority of seats in the Ukrainian parliament, so he governs without having to depend on coalition partners. And the country’s constitution prohibits the holding of elections in wartime – whatever Putin, who regularly insists that Zelensky is an illegitimate leader because he is governing past his term limit, might think. Plus his approval rating sits at 65%.
Zelensky has been quick to soften his stance on this. Mathers says that political corruption is a very sore point in Ukraine, where there was decades of it until the Maidan protests of 2013-14 unseated the pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych. As she writes here, “the ‘Revolution of Dignity’ that rejected Yanukovych’s leadership and his policies was also a resounding demonstration of the strength of Ukraine’s civil society and its determination to hold its elected officials to account. Zelensky would be rash not to heed that.
He also knows it’s important for him to present a squeaky clean image to his supporters in the west. So while the protests may not present an immediate threat to his own position, he knows that unless he acts to root out corruption in Ukraine, it’ll be a threat to the future of the country itself.
But ethicist Marcel Vondermassen from the University of Tübingen believes another recent decision by the Ukrainian government is storing up trouble for the future. Ukraine has recently announced its decision to pull out of the Ottawa convention, the treaty that forbids the use of anti-personnel landmines.
In doing so, he’s following the example of Finland, Poland, Lithuania and Estonia which have all also quite the treaty in recent months for fear of Russian aggression.
But as Vondermassen points out, landmines don’t usually switch themselves off when a conflict ends and people are still being killed an maimed in former conflict zones around the world. Often it is farmers at work or children at play who are the victims. If other ways to protect countries from aggression aren’t pursued, as he puts it, in future decades we’ll still be “counting thousands of child casualties … from the landmines laid in the 2020s”.
Thailand-Cambodia: centuries-old dispute flares again
A dispute between the two south-east Asian countries that has been simmering since May flared into life yesterday when five Thai soldiers patrolling the border region were injured after stepping on a landmine – the second such incident in the past week. Both countries have sealed their border and there have been tit-for-tat ambassadorial expulsions.
Cambodia fired rockets and artillery into Thailand, killing 12 civilians. Thailand in turn has launched airstrikes against Cambodia. Both countries are blaming the other for starting it.
Petra Alderman, an expert in south-east Asian politics from London School of Economics and Political Science, traces the origins of this row, which go back to the colonial era in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Marc Fullman, Docotoral Researcher in Organisational Behaviour, University of Sussex Business School, University of Sussex
If your first task of the day is triaging a bulging inbox at 6am, you are not alone. A recent Microsoft report headlined “Breaking down the infinite workday” found that 40% of Microsoft 365 users online at this hour are already scanning their emails – and that an average worker will receive 117 emails before the clock rolls around to midnight.
But that’s not all. By 8am, Microsoft Teams notifications outstrip email for most workers, and the typical employee is hit with 153 chat messages during the day.
The report states that, while meetings swallow the prime 9am–11am focus window, interruptions arrive every two minutes throughout the day. This perpetual work overload means a third of professionals reopen their inbox to answer more emails at 10pm.
In short, Microsoft’s telemetry of this “triple-peak” day (first thing, mid-morning and late at night) paints a vivid picture of a work rhythm that never stops.
From an occupational psychology perspective, these statistics are more than curious trivia. They signal a cluster of psychosocial hazards.
Boundary Theory holds that recovery depends on clear and solid boundaries – both psychologically and in terms of time – between work and the rest of life. Microsoft’s findings show those limits dissolving. This includes 29% of users checking email after 10pm.
Similarly, a four-day diary study of Dutch professionals found that heavier after-hours smartphone use predicted poorer psychological detachment and exhaustion the next day.
This can have wider consequences. When people are busy, rushed or harried, one of the first things to suffer is their regulation of online behaviour. Large-scale survey research shows that ambiguous or curt digital messages occur when we are depleted. These can obviously sap wellbeing in recipients.
In a 2024 study of workers in the UK and Italy, incivility in emails between colleagues predicted work-life conflict and exhaustion via “techno-invasion”, as workers reported being exposed to an ongoing torrent of unpleasant messaging.
So-called ‘techno-invasion’ could lead to work-life conflict and emotional exhaustion. fizkes/Shutterstock
My ongoing doctoral research examines how workers respond to messages they receive, and exposes the nuance on different communication platforms. Among the 300 UK workers involved, identical messages were rated as more uncivil on email than on Teams, particularly when they were informal. Frustration on the part of a recipient (in terms of how they interpret a message) accounted for nearly 50% of perceived incivility on email, but only 30% on Teams.
These findings suggest that choice of platform significantly influences how messages are received and interpreted. Using these insights, organisations can make informed decisions about communication channels, and potentially reduce workplace stress and improve employee wellbeing in the process.
Microsoft suggests that AI “agent bosses” will rescue workers. These tools could summarise inboxes, draft replies and free up humans for higher-order work.
The data, however, exposes a cultural contradiction. Managers tell staff to switch off, yet their appraisal spreadsheets tell a different story. In one set of experiments, the same bosses who praised weekend digital detoxing also ranked the detoxers as less promotable than colleagues who were glued to their inboxes.
Little wonder Microsoft’s own data shows the same late-night peak, despite widespread wellbeing guidance to switch off after hours. Without changing how commitment is signalled and rewarded, faster tools risk accelerating the treadmill rather than dismantling it.
What organisations can do
1. Individual level – let people feel they have control
Encourage “quiet hours” and teach employees to disable non-urgent notifications. Boundary-control research shows that when workers feel they have control over connectivity, it creates a buffer against fatigue caused by after-hours email.
2. Team level – communication charters
Teams should agree explicit norms for communication. This could include capping the numbers invited to meetings and insisting on agendas. Simple charters along these lines restore predictability for workers and cut “decision fatigue”.
3. Organisational level – redesign metrics
Organisations could shift from visibility (green dots and instant replies) to outcome-based metrics for productivity. This removes the incentive for workers to stay online and aligns with evidence that autonomy is a key resource.
4. Technological level – AI for elimination, not acceleration
Workplaces should deploy AI assistants to remove low-value tasks (for example, sorting email or drafting minutes), not just speed them up. Then they should conduct workload audits to ensure the time saved is reinvested in deep work, not simply swallowed up by extra meetings.
The Microsoft dataset is enormous, but there are two important points to note. First, European jurisdictions with “right to disconnect” laws may be missing from the figures. Second, some metrics (for example, interruptions) are calculated on the most active fifth of users, potentially overstating a typical experience.
But if the numbers in Microsoft’s report feel familiar, that is precisely the point. The technology designed to liberate workers is now scripting their day minute-by-minute. Occupational psychology researchers warn that without deliberate boundary setting, rising digital job demands will continue to tax wellbeing and dull performance.
AI can be a circuit breaker, but only if it is accompanied by cultural and structural change that gives employees permission to disconnect.
The infinite workday is not a law of nature, it is a design flaw. Fixing it will take more than faster software – it will demand a collective decision to prize focus, recovery and civility as fiercely as workers currently prize availability.
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Marc Fullman 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.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Travis Van Isacker, Senior Research Associate, School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, University of Bristol
On a cold, wet November evening, Issa Mohamed Omar and more than 30 other men, women and children set off from their informal camp near the northern French port city of Dunkirk. They walked through the darkness in near-silence for around two hours, until they reached the beach from where they hoped to start a new and better life.
As they arrived, five men were busy pumping up an inflatable dinghy and attaching an outboard engine. These people smugglers had charged each of their customers more than a thousand euros for a trip that costs someone with the right passport less than a hundred.
The travellers were given life-vests, arranged into rows and counted. “There are 33 of you,” one of the smugglers said. For many on board, this was not their first attempt at reaching England.
Most came from Iraqi Kurdistan, including Kazhal Ahmed Khidir Al-Jammoor from Erbil, who was travelling with her three children: Hadiya, Mubin and Hasti Rizghar Hussein, respectively aged 22, 16 and seven.
A father and son from Egypt were shown how the engine worked and provided a GPS device and directions to Dover, around 35 miles (60km) to the west across the Channel. Mohamed Omar would later recall:
The Egyptian man was put in charge of steering the boat by the smugglers. He was travelling with his son, who looked like he was in his late teens or maybe early 20s. I do not know how they came to be the driver and navigator.
There were also at least three Ethiopian nationals – one of whom, father-of-two Fikiru Shiferaw from Addis Ababa, sent his wife Emebet at home in Ethiopia a final WhatsApp voice message:
We have already boarded the boat. We are on the way. I will turn off my phone now. Goodnight, I will call you tomorrow morning.
These were the last words she would ever receive from her husband.
What happened to Fikiru Shiferaw and the other passengers on the night of November 23-24 2021 has been the subject of the UK’s Cranston Inquiry which, during March 2025, heard from 22 witnesses to the disaster, including officers involved in the UK’s search-and-rescue (SAR) response. Chaired by former High Court judge Sir Ross Cranston, the independent inquiry also heard from Mohamed Omar from Somalia – one of only two survivors – as well as family members of many of the dead and missing.
These hearings not only shed light on the actions of UK Border Force and His Majesty’s Coastguard officers during the failed rescue operation – designated Incident Charlie – in the early hours of November 24, but the agencies’ approach to “small boat crossings” in general dating back to 2017.
According to the testimonies, officers had been operating under extreme pressure in the months leading up to the disaster. Kevin Toy, master of the Border Force ship Valiant which was sent out to search for the missing dinghy that night, explained that in the run-up to the incident, “night after night” he could see his crew were “utterly exhausted” by the end of their shifts.
The evidence shows the British government was aware of the growing risk that Border Force and HM Coastguard could be overwhelmed by the rising number of small boat crossings – and that people might die as a result. In May 2020, a document produced by the Department for Transport acknowledged that “SAR resources can be overwhelmed if current incident numbers persist”. At least three senior HM Coastguard officers identified the same risk in August 2021.
Multiple communication failures have also been exposed by the inquiry – among British officers, with their opposite numbers in France, and between both countries’ emergency services and the increasingly desperate people aboard the sinking dinghy.
Despite numerous distress calls and GPS coordinates being shared via WhatsApp, a rescue boat failed to reach the travellers in time. Amid the confusion, when their calls stopped, the coastguard assumed Charlie’s passengers had been picked up and were safe. In fact, they were perishing in the cold waters of the Channel over more than ten hours.
The Insights section is committed to high-quality longform journalism. Our editors work with academics from many different backgrounds who are tackling a wide range of societal and scientific challenges.
As part of my research into the digital transformation of the UK-France border, I attended the inquiry and have studied the many statements, call transcripts, operational logs, emails and meeting minutes it has made public. Initially, I wanted to understand how the November 2021 disaster became a watershed moment in the UK government’s response to people trying to cross the Channel by small boat or dinghy, catalysing the transformation of the UK’s maritime border into the hyper-surveilled space it is today.
But, after speaking to representatives for Mohamed Omar and the bereaved families as well as migrant rights organisations, larger questions have emerged. In particular, given the inquiry’s singular focus on this one catastrophic event in November 2021, those I spoke to are concerned that its recommendations will be unable to prevent further deaths from occurring in the Channel, which have risen dramatically over the last 18 months.
How ‘small boat crossings’ began
Since the UK and France began operating “juxtaposed” border controls in the early 1990s (meaning border checks occur before departure), asylum seekers trying to reach England have had to make irregular journeys across the Channel. Until 2018, these were typically aboard trains and ferries – after sneaking on to a lorry or through a French port’s perimeter security.
At the time of the “Jungle” camp near Calais in 2015-16, media coverage of collective attempts by its residents to enter French ports spiked UK government investment in the border. Between 2014 and 2018, it gave its French counterpart at least £123 million to “strengthen the border and maintain juxtaposed controls”. These funds paid for French police to patrol the ports and border cities, regularly evict migrants’ living sites, and finance detention and relocation centres.
As admitted by then-home secretary Sajid Javid in 2019, this increased security led people to find other ways across the Channel. Beginning in the winter of 2018, smugglers organised journeys in small, seaworthy vessels they had stolen from marinas along the French coast. These “small boats” continue to lend their name to this migration phenomenon – yet the unseaworthy inflatable dinghies used today, with no keel or rigid hull, are not worthy of the name.
Even in the context of the usual sensationalism surrounding irregular migration to the UK, small boat journeys were met with an especially intense response, both politically and in the media.
When 101 people crossed between Christmas and New Year in 2018, Javid declared it a major incident. Ever since, “stopping the boats” has been one of the UK government’s highest priorities. Despite small boat arrivals making up only 29% of UK asylum claimants in 2018-24, billions of pounds have been spent to try and control the route.
Frosty relations and the ‘pushback’ plan
As Channel crossings rose sharply over 2020-21, worsening relations between France and the UK due to Brexit complicated how the two governments worked together to respond. In his testimony, former clandestine Channel threat commander Dan O’Mahoney – appointed by Javid’s successor, Priti Patel, to “make small boat crossings unviable” – described relations between the two countries as already “very frosty” when he began in August 2020.
After France’s then-interior minister, Gérald Darmanin, axed a plan for UK vessels to take rescued migrants back to Dunkirk, O’Mahoney was tasked by senior ministers to come up with an alternative. The resulting “pushback” plan, called Operation Sommen, involved Border Force officers on jet skis driving into migrant dinghies to turn them back as they crossed the border line into UK waters. When France learned of the plan, O’Mahoney recalled:
They thought it went counter to their and our obligations around safety of life at sea … They objected to it very strongly, and it affected our already quite strained relationship with them further.
Operation Sommen was abandoned in April 2022 before having ever been used in anger. However, preparations were said to have taken up “a very considerable amount of time and resource” at both the Home Office and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency – and had “a detrimental effect” on the UK’s overall SAR response to small boat crossings.
At a meeting of senior officials in June 2021 to discuss Operation Sommen, ministers had made clear that the “numbers of people crossing [was] a political problem” – and that improving SAR capabilities did not “fit with [the] narrative of taking back control of borders”.
Although senior HM Coastguard officers recognised “it is extremely difficult to locate small boats or communicate with those onboard”, the inquiry heard that officers did not recall receiving “any small boat training before November 2021”, other than in the procedure to allow Border Force to push them back to French waters.
The head of Border Force’s Maritime Command, Stephen Whitton, told the inquiry he was under “a huge amount of pressure” to prevent small boat crossings, while also “providing the bulk of the support to search and rescue”. Despite carrying out 90% of all small boat rescues in the Channel and “regularly being overwhelmed”, Border Force Maritime Command received “no additional assets to manage the search and rescue response” before November 2021.
‘The pressure we were under’
When the decision was taken for Border Force – a law enforcement rather than search-and-rescue organisation – to be the primary responders to small boat crossings in 2018, only around 100 people were crossing each month. Yet by the time of the disaster three years later, according to an internal Home Office document, the total for 2021 was “already more than 25,000”.
At the inquiry, O’Mahoney stated: “As 2021 went on, it became much clearer that … frankly, we just needed more [rescue] boats.” Whitton admitted that before the disaster, Border Force, HM Coastguard, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and other support organisations were all “on our knees in terms of the pressure we were under, and it was getting hugely challenging”.
The evidence shows this pressure was acutely felt inside Dover’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre, which sits atop the port’s famous white cliffs offering a commanding view of the Channel. Inside, Coastguard officers coordinate SAR operations and control vessel traffic in the Dover Strait – one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
On the night of November 23-24, three coastguard officers were on search-and-rescue duty: team leader Neal Gibson, maritime operations officer Stuart Downs, and a trainee – unnamed by the inquiry – who was officially only present as an observer.
HM Coastguard’s Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre at Dover overlooking the Channel. Travis Van Isacker, CC BY-NC-SA
Staffing appears to have been a longstanding issue at the Dover coastguard station where, according to divisional commander Mike Bill, there was “poor retention of staff” and “experience and competence weren’t the best”. Only the day before the disaster, during a migrant red days meeting – convened when, due to good weather, the probability of Channel crossers is considered “highly likely” – chief coastguard Peter Mizen had warned that only having two qualified officers at Dover on nights “isn’t enough”.
Over recent months, as the station had become busier responding to small boat crossings and in the wake of an unsuccessful recruitment drive, staff were having to work flat-out throughout their shifts, and were being asked to come in on scheduled days off.
On the night of November 23-24, owing to staff shortages, team leader Gibson told the inquiry he had to cover traffic control duties for three hours from 10.30pm. This meant he was away from the SAR desk at 00.41am, when a message arrived from the national rescue coordination centre along the coast in Fareham, stating that the Coastguard’s scheduled surveillance aeroplanes would not be flying over the Channel that night due to fog.
The officers were told they would be “effectively blind” – and should not allow themselves “to be drawn into relaxing and expecting a normal migrant crossing night”. The message warned: “This has the potential to be very dangerous.”
‘Their boat – there’s nothing left’
According to Mohamed Omar, the sea was calm when he and the other passengers departed the French beach around 9pm UK time. Giving his evidence to the Cranston Inquiry from Paris – he still cannot travel to the UK – a ship approached them around an hour into their voyage:
They came up to us to see what we were doing, and shone a light on us. I remember seeing a French flag on the boat. It was a big boat and I am certain it was the French coastguard. I had heard from people I met in the camp in Dunkirk that this happened sometimes, and that the French boat would follow until you reached English waters.
In fact, Mohamed Omar said, the French ship left the travellers again after about an hour. Shortly after this, the problems began.
A French warship patrols the shore of Mardyck in northern France, close to where Charlie is thought to have departed. Travis Van Isacker, CC BY-NC-SA
Around 1am, seawater began entering the dinghy. By now, it was in the vicinity of the Sandettie lightvessel, around 20 miles north-east of Dover. At first, passengers managed to bail out the 13°C water – but soon the flooding became uncontrollable. The dinghy’s inflatable tube began losing pressure, and a couple of the Kurdish men used air pumps to try to keep it inflated. Others tried to prevent panic spreading among the passengers.
Many onboard began to make frantic calls for rescue. What were reported to be leaked transcripts of some of these calls were published by French newspaper Le Monde a year after the sinking. They showed the first distress call from the dinghy was received by the French coastguard at 12.48am. Speaking in English, the caller said there were 33 people on board a “broken” boat.
According to Le Monde, three minutes later, another call was transferred to the French maritime rescue coordination centre at Cap Gris-Nez by an emergency operator who reported: “Apparently their boat – there’s nothing left.” Following procedure, the French coastguard officer asked the caller to send a GPS position by WhatsApp so she could “send a rescue boat as soon as possible”. At 1.05am UK time, the GPS position arrived.
Rather than send a French boat, Le Monde reported that the officer phoned her counterparts in Dover to warn them a dinghy 0.6 nautical miles from the border line would soon be crossing into UK waters. On the other end of the line was the trainee officer, who was handling routine calls that night despite officially only being an observer.
After the call finished, according to Downs’s evidence to the inquiry, the trainee mistakenly told him the dinghy was thought to be “in good condition” – information he recorded in the log for Incident Charlie. This miscommunication may have affected the urgency of the UK’s SAR response, preventing HM Coastguard and Border Force from appreciating the severe distress the “broken” dinghy was in.
Just before 1am, the French coastguard had sent its migrant tracker spreadsheet, containing information on all small boat crossings that night, to HM Coastguard for the first time. It showed four migrant dinghies at sea – which Gris-Nez had been aware of “for many hours”, according to Gibson.
The issue of the French coastguard appearing to withhold information about active small boat crossings had been raised by HM Coastguard’s clandestine operations liaison officer during a July 2021 review. And earlier that very evening, Gibson told one of his colleagues:
Sometimes they just seem to keep it quiet. Like we’ll not get anything – then we’ll get a tracker at three in the morning with 15 incidents, and they go: ‘Mostly these are in your search-and-rescue region.’ Wonderful.
At 1.20am, Downs phoned Border Force Maritime Command in Portsmouth to request a Border Force vessel search for the dinghy Charlie. He provided the GPS position received from his French counterpart and the number of people onboard – but also the incorrect information that “they think it’s in good condition”.
Ten minutes later, the Valiant, Border Force’s 42-metre patrol ship stationed at Dover, was tasked to proceed towards the Sandettie lightvessel. At the same time, the first direct call to the Dover rescue coordination centre came in from Charlie. The distressed caller said they were “in the water” and that “everything [was] finished”.
Around 15 minutes later, at 1.48am, Gibson took a call from 16-year-old Mubin Rizghar Hussein, who spoke good English. Despite the noise and commotion, he managed to provide Gibson with a WhatsApp number – in order to share their GPS position. The transcript of this call records voices shouting in the background: “It’s finished. Finished. Brother, it’s finished.”
A ‘grave and imminent threat to life’
Gibson told the inquiry that after his call with Rizghar Hussein, he had a “gut feeling that this doesn’t feel quite as usual”. By “usual” he meant what was, according to maritime operations officer Downs, a commonly held belief at the Dover coastguard station that with “nine out of ten”“ callers from small boats: “It would generally be overstated that the boat … was sinking, people were drowning … Whatever was going on would be overstated.”
Acting on his gut feeling, at 2.27am Gibson took the unprecedented decision to broadcast a Mayday Relay – denoting a “grave and imminent threat to life”. By maritime law, this alert required other vessels to offer their assistance.
Gibson told the inquiry he did this to get the French warship Flamant to respond. He could see on his radar screen that Flamant was closest to Charlie’s position and was the best vessel to rescue the people if the dinghy really was sinking.
Why the Flamant did not respond is at the centre of an ongoing criminal investigation in France into two of the warship’s officers and five coastguards from Gris-Nez, for “non-assistance of persons in distress”. This investigation’s strict confidentiality obligation means the inquiry was unable to access any information from the French side about their operations that night.
At 2.01 and again at 2.14am, HM Coastguard had received new GPS positions via WhatsApp showing the dinghy to be more than a mile inside UK waters.
Valiant, having been tasked at 1.30am, only exited the port of Dover at 2.22am and would need at least another hour to reach the Sandettie. Despite this, no other vessel was sent to join the search. At 3.11am, when asked during a call by Border Force Maritime Command whether Charlie was “still a Mayday situation”, Gibson replied: “Well, they’ve told me it’s full of water.”
With a total of four small boats being shown in the Channel that night by the French tracker spreadsheet, Gibson suggested there could be as many as 110 people on board these dinghies – beyond Valiant’s capacity for taking on survivors. Nevertheless, Border Force and HM Coastguard opted to “wait and see what the numbers are, and whether Valiant can deal with that … We don’t want to call any other assets out just yet.”
In a call with Christopher Trubshaw, captain of the Coastguard rescue helicopter stationed at Lydd on the Kent coast, aviation tactical commander Dominic Golden explained that Border Force was “not prepared to bring in their crews who are pretty knackered” unless “we can convince them there are people in real danger”. He then asked Trubshaw to search the Channel for the small boats shown in the French tracker, as the surveillance aeroplanes had been unable to take off.
In her closing submission to the inquiry, Sonali Naik, a legal representative of the survivors and bereaved families, highlighted Golden’s “dismissive attitude” towards Charlie’s distress when he gave Trubshaw the reason for the request, which included the following:
As usual, the catalogue of phone calls is beginning to trickle in … You know, the classic ‘I am lost, I am sinking, my mother’s wheelchair is falling over the side’ etc. ‘Sharks with lasers surrounding boat’ and ‘we are all dying’ type of thing.
Nevertheless, Golden asked the helicopter crew to pack a liferaft. “I can’t imagine we’re going to need it but … potentially you get to play with one of your new toys.”
While Golden described his words as “unwise” or “flippant”, Naik said they were “more than that” – suggesting they revealed rescuers’ general perceptions of the occupants of small boats and the widely held scepticism towards their distress calls.
‘We are dying. Where is the boat?’
With the water inside rising fast and their dinghy collapsing, Charlie’s increasingly desperate passengers kept trying to get rescuers to appreciate how dire their situation was.
At 2.31am in the Dover rescue coordination centre, Gibson received a second call from Mubin Rizghar Hussein, who pleaded: “We are dying, where is the boat?”
Gibson replied: “The boat is on its way but it has to get …” only to be interrupted by Rizghar Hussein saying: “We all die. We all die.”
“I get that,” Gibson told the terrified teenager, “but unfortunately, you’re going to be patient and all stay together, because I can’t make the boat come any quicker.” He ended the call saying:
You need to stop making calls because every time you make a call, we think there’s another boat out there – and we don’t want to accidentally go chasing for another boat when it’s actually your boat we’re looking for.
Gibson broke down briefly when recounting this second call during his evidence to the inquiry, explaining:
If you don’t understand what’s fully going on and you’re getting ‘we’re all going to die’, it’s quite a distressing situation to find yourself in, sitting at the end of a phone – effectively helpless. You know where they are, you want to get a boat to them, and you can’t.
Call records also show that coastguards on both sides of the Channel passed responsibility for rescuing the sinking dinghy off to one another. According to Le Monde, during one call a passenger told the French coastguard officer he was “in the water” – to which she replied: “Yes, but you are in English waters.”
The transcript of the last call before Charlie capsized, made at 3.12am, reveals that Downs asked “where are you?” 17 times – despite the caller being unable to answer anything beyond “English waters”. The maritime operations officer finished by instructing the caller to hang up and dial 999: “If it won’t connect on 999, then you’re probably still in French waters.”
In her closing submission, Naik pointed to “discriminatory stereotypes and attitudes towards migrants on small boats which fatally affected the SAR response” for Charlie – as rescuers, in her words, “jumped to premature conclusions”. According to survivor Mohamed Omar:
Because we have been seen as refugees … that’s the reason why I believe the rescue, they did not come at all. We feel like we were … treated like animals.
Fatal assumptions
At 3.27am, Border Force’s ship Valiant arrived at Charlie’s last recorded GPS position (from 2.14am) – but found nothing. Its master, Kevin Toy, decided to head north-easterly towards the Sandettie lightvessel, the way the tide was flowing.
En route, Valiant spotted two other dinghies in the darkness using its night vision – one still making its way towards the English coast, the other stopped in the water. The stationary dinghy was in greater danger from the Channel’s shipping traffic, so Valiant went to it and began rescuing those onboard – radioing back that it had “engaged unlit migrant crafts stopped in the water” with approximately 40 people onboard.
In the Dover rescue coordination centre, Gibson assumed this dinghy could be Charlie and gave Mubin Rizghar Hussein’s name and telephone number so Valiant’s crew could verify whether he was on board. At 4.16am, Gibson himself tried calling the WhatsApp number that Rizghar Hussein had shared, but the call failed.
At 4.20am, Valiant completed its first rescue of the morning. Two more followed after the Coastguard helicopter spotted two other dinghies in the Sandettie area – but nobody in the water. A near-capacity Valiant then returned to Dover just after 8am with 98 survivors on board.
None of the three rescued dinghies matched the description of Charlie. All were in good condition, differently coloured, and with disparate numbers of people onboard – yet the misplaced assumption Charlie had been rescued persisted amid the night’s murky information environment. Gibson stated that, while he had soon received additional information matching Valiant’s first rescue to a different dinghy, he was still “fairly certain Charlie had been picked up”.
“Once Valiant had picked up these [three] boats,” he explained, “we no longer received calls from Charlie, and a call to a known phone number on Charlie failed.” As a result, neither Valiant nor the Coastguard helicopter were sent back out to continue searching for the stricken dinghy.
In fact, Gibson’s call to Rizghar Hussein’s WhatsApp number did not fail because Charlie’s passengers had been rescued – nor because they had thrown their phones into the sea when Border Force arrived. Rather, it was because the dinghy had capsized and everyone had fallen into the Channel’s freezing waters.
‘No one came to our rescue’
In harrowing evidence to the inquiry, Mohamed Omar explained how, as one side of the dinghy deflated, the passengers – “hysterical and crying” – panicked and moved to the opposite side. This shift in weight caused the dinghy to capsize:
The screaming when the boat tipped and people fell in the water was deafening. I have never heard anything as desperate as this. I was not thinking about whether we were going to be rescued any more; it was all about how to stay alive.
As the passengers were thrown into the water, the dinghy flipped on top of them. Mohamed Omar described having to swim out from underneath to catch a breath: “It was dark and I could not really see. It was extremely cold and the sea was rough.”
As he surfaced, he saw Halima Mohammed Shikh, a mother of three also from Somalia and travelling alone, struggling as she couldn’t swim. She screamed his name for help, and he tried to get her back to what was left of the dinghy – but couldn’t. “I think she was one of the first people to drown,” he told the inquiry.
Others managed to cling to the broken inflatable, hoping rescue was on its way – but “no one came to our rescue”. Pushed and pulled by the waves, some lost their grip and drifted away before dawn. Mohamed Omar recalled:
All night, I was holding on to what remained of the boat. In the morning, I could hear the people were screaming and everything. It’s something I cannot forget in my mind.
By the time the sun finally rose at 7.26am, he estimated that no more than 15 people were left clinging to the broken dinghy – adrift on the tide in a busy shipping lane:
I do not recall speaking with anyone in the water. Those who were alive were half-dead. There was nothing we could do any more. I could see bodies floating all around us in the water. I presume most people were either already dead or were unconscious.
Shortly afterwards, Mohamed Omar said he let go of the dinghy and began to swim, thinking to himself: “I am going to die [but] I don’t want to die here. At least if I die whilst swimming, I won’t feel it.”
He swam towards a boat he could see in the distance and, as he got closer, began to wave his life jacket for attention. A French woman, out fishing with her family, saw him and jumped in the water to save him.
As he finished telling his story, Mohamed Omar told the inquiry: “I’m a voice for those people who passed away.”
Bodies are found
Around 1pm on the afternoon of November 24, 12 hours after the first distress calls from Charlie, a French commercial fishing vessel began finding bodies in the sea nine miles north-west of Calais. But as the news came in, no one at HM Coastguard or Border Force appears to have made the connection with Incident Charlie.
Days later, when the accounts of Mohamed Omar’s fellow survivor, Mohammed Shekha Ahmad from Iraqi Kurdistan, and a relative of two of the deceased emerged, the Home Office refuted their claims that the dinghy had sunk in UK waters as “completely untrue”.
However, five days after the disaster, Gibson contacted the small boats tactical commander to share his concerns that the reported deaths could be from Charlie. He had read a news article in which “the survivor states a male called Mubin called the emergency services, which could possibly be the ‘Moomin’ [sic] I spoke to”.
On December 1, clandestine Channel threat commander O’Mahoney responded to a question from the UK’s Joint Committee on Human Rights, as to whether the migrants whose bodies had been found in French waters had made distress calls to the UK authorities. O’Mahoney told the committee:
We are looking into that. To manage your expectation, though, it may never be possible to say with absolute accuracy whether that boat was in UK waters [and] I cannot tell you with any certainty that the people on that particular boat called the UK authorities.
Thanks largely to their grieving families tireless pursuit of the truth, however, it is now possible to say definitively that Charlie had been in UK waters – and that a number of its passengers spoke to HM Coastguard officers.
It was only after these families raised concerns that the disaster had involved the UK authorities that the Department for Transport commissioned a safety investigation into the incident in January 2022. A lawyer for the bereaved families suggested to me that without the threat of legal action, the Department for Transport “would likely not have done anything” – despite this being Britain’s worst maritime disaster for decades. Meanwhile, according to inquiry evidence, the Home Office is understood not to have conducted an internal review or investigation into its role in the disaster.
After a frustrating two years of waiting for the survivors and bereaved families, the Marine Accidents Investigations Branch published its report – which both confirmed most of their accounts and substantiated their criticisms of the SAR response.
Soon afterwards, the Cranston Inquiry was announced. Despite no bodies having been recovered in UK waters, it has been run almost like an inquest. In his final report – to be published by the end of 2025 – Sir Ross Cranston has promised to “consider what lessons can be learned and, if appropriate, make recommendations to reduce the risk of a similar event occurring”.
A ‘crucial and unique opportunity’
HM Coastguard and Border Force officers have repeatedly told the inquiry how the UK’s approach to small boat search-and-rescue has changed since the November 2021 disaster. More officers have been hired, Border Force has contracted additional boats to conduct rescues, information sharing has improved, and cooperation with French colleagues is better. Today, there are significantly more rescue ships on both sides of the Channel which can intervene faster when dinghies come to be in distress, and have undoubtedly saved many lives.
There has also been massive investment in drones, aeroplanes and powerful shore-based cameras to reduce the risk that HM Coastguard loses “maritime domain awareness” again if some of its surveillance aircraft are unable to fly. New technology automatically translates coastguard officers’ messages into different languages and extracts live GPS locations and images from travellers’ mobile devices.
Such investments make it unlikely that another dinghy could be lost in the middle of the Channel after its passengers call for help, in the way Charlie so catastrophically was.
Nevertheless, people continue dying while attempting to cross the Channel – with 2024 having been by far the deadliest year yet. At least 69 people lost their lives, according to the Refugee Council. So far in 2025, 24 people are documented as dead or missing at the UK-France border by Calais Migrant Solidarity, amid a record number of attempted crossings for the first half of the year.
Some migrants’ rights NGOs have suggested the UK’s “stop the boats” policies, and European efforts to disrupt the supply chain of dinghies and other equipment used in crossings, has driven such deadly overcrowding.
But it is also unlikely that the circumstances surrounding more recent deaths in the Channel will ever be investigated as thoroughly as Incident Charlie, if at all. Lawyers for the bereaved families have therefore been keen to highlight the Cranston Inquiry’s “crucial and unique opportunity” not only to look back and offer answers about one of Britain’s worst maritime disasters in recent decades – but to look forwards and “prevent the further loss of life at sea”.
The survivors, families and migrants’ rights organisations who contributed their evidence thus hope the inquiry’s recommendations go beyond purely operational and administrative improvements to search-and-rescue, to address the fundamental role that UK, France and European border policies play in why more people are dying in the Channel, despite the improvements to search-and-rescue strategies and resources.
Above all, they ask why only some people are able to travel to the UK in comfort and safety while others must make the journey in precarious, overcrowded inflatable dinghies – and thus entrust their lives to the search-and-rescue services whose success can never be guaranteed. As Halima Mohammed Shikh’s cousin, Ali Areef, told the inquiry:
It makes me feel sick to think about crossing the Channel in a ferry where others including a member of my family lost their lives because there was no other way to cross. I will never take a ferry across the Channel again.
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Travis Van Isacker gratefully acknowledges the support of the Economic and Social Research Council
(UK) (Grant Ref: ES/W002639/1).
The programme has been announced for Manchester’s role as Guest City at this year’s iconic La Mercè festival in Barcelona – which each year attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors into the city for a 6-day cultural festival that sets the very highest of bars for festivals everywhere, showcasing the very best of traditional Catalan culture, outdoor arts, and music.
Manchester was chosen last year by its Catalan counterparts to be the first-ever English guest city at this year’s event which takes place from 23 – 28 September.
A Memorandum of Understanding signed between Manchester and Barcelona last year, noted that the two cities share both a very similar industrial past with histories that are linked to workers’ movements, as well as a present and future with great cultural wealth linked to the creative industries.
The Memorandum kicked off a cultural collaboration between the two cities, providing a working framework for artists, organisations, and other partners, focusing initially on music and street arts events for this year’s La Mercè festival.
Since then the two cities have been working closely to put together a spectacular programme of Mancunian grown talent in outdoor arts and music for audiences in Barcelona to enjoy.
Councillor Garry Bridges, Deputy Leader, Manchester City Council, said: “Guest City status for Manchester at this year’s La Mercè festival is a huge honour for us and we’re enormously grateful to our partners, colleagues and friends in Barcelona for the opportunity to collaborate and play a part in their iconic festival.
“Culture and diversity are big deals for us in Manchester and play a vital part in helping strengthen and shape our communities, pride and prosperity. Thanks to our wonderfully diverse artists, venues, festivals, and creative workforce, culture has had a transformative effect on our city.
“The Manchester programme for La Mercè showcases the very best of our fantastically diverse cultural scene and our hugely talented artists and creators.
“We hope it gives a flavour of the vibrant and thriving cultural scene we have here in Manchester and look forward to further strengthening our ties with the great city of Barcelona and welcoming new visitors and audiences to our city off the back of this.”
The resulting programme is a celebration of fantastic outdoor work created by Manchester artists and organisations.
Highlights in the special cultural exchange include two unique new commissions from Manchester-based creators working with Barcelona-based performers, alongside new work created to celebrate Manchester and its people at La Mercè.
The programme for Manchester as Guest City has been led by XTRAX and Without Walls. It showcases the diverse cultural communities of Manchester and the rich diversity of the UK outdoor arts scene – including parades, dance, music, poetry, fire and installations.
Maggie Clarke, Director at XTRAX, said: “I’m delighted that Manchester will be Guest City at La Mercè 2025, which is the result of many years of collaboration between XTRAX and colleagues in Barcelona City Council and the Catalan arts scene. La Mercè is recognised as one of the greatest festivals of outdoor arts in the world, and it is an honour to present some of the fantastic work from Manchester at this prestigious event.
“XTRAX firmly believes in the importance of outdoor festivals, and their valuable role in bringing people and communities together. Our programme at La Mercè celebrates the diversity and quality of work from our region and we hope will inspire other global cities to seek collaborations with Manchester and the great artists from our city.
“I’m thrilled to have secured a great opportunity for UK artists in Barcelona and we look forward to continuing this exchange by hosting Barcelona artists in Manchester in 2026, and ongoing collaboration in years to come.”
Manchester at La Mercè has been produced by XTRAX, and co-curated by Without Walls.
Ralph Kennedy, Chief Executive at Without Walls, said: “We’re honoured to have collaborated with XTRAX as a strategic partner for Mercè Arts de Carrer (MAC), the La Mercè outdoor programme. Without Walls has been proudly based in Manchester since its founding, and we’re absolutely thrilled to be part of this exciting city to city partnership.
“Manchester is a vibrant hub for some of the best outdoor art being created in the UK today. The programme of shows curated by XTRAX and Without Walls for Barcelona, in partnership with the artistic director of MAC, stands as a testament to the city’s incredible creative energy.”
The Manchester at La Mercè programme features several major collaboration projects between Manchester and Barcelona artists, as well as new work created especially for this unique event.
Here are some of the highlights:
Bee for Barcelona
Carnival arts specialists Global Grooves (Manchester) team up with renowned Catalan artists Pau Reig and Dolors Sans (Barcelona) to create Bee for Barcelona– a striking new collaboration to create two Giant Bees, celebrating shared industrial heritage, cultural pride, and artistic exchange. These Giants will perform in front of thousands of people as part of La Mercè world famous Parades of Giants and Beasts.
Queen Bee Gigante, wears a costume reflecting Greater Manchester’s communities and cotton legacy. She transforms into a maypole, surrounded by 30 community dancers and musicians in a fusion of Morris and Classical Indian dance—re-imagining May Day and Carnival traditions.
Alongside her,Worker Bee, a 4-metre kinetic sculpture, shimmers with hand-painted silks encased in fibreglass, evoking stained glass. Copper legs and cog motifs nod to the textile mills and industrial histories of Manchester and Barcelona and the birth of the Industrial Revolution.
Blending Mancunian, Catalan, Pan-African, and South Asian influences, the project features 30 diverse performers from groups including Saddleworth Women’s Morris and Clog, and The Indian Association Oldham’s Dancing Diyas.
Leon Patel, CEO, Carnival arts organisation Global Grooves, said: “Queen Bee and Worker Bee tell a powerful story of how they earned their stripes.
“Queen Bee represents the evolution of that labour into opportunity, progress, culture, and celebration. She is not born of royal blood, but is Queen for a day, like the Cotton Queens of Greater Manchester’s mill towns, the Carnival Queens of the Afro-Brazilian tradition, and the flower-crowned May Queen. Work Bee honours the sweat and toil of workers wo build Manchester’s global industrial might.
“Both bees will be animated in parades and performances at La Mercè accompanied by an original musical score blending Mancunian, Catalan, Pan-African, and South Asian sounds.”
Both bees will be brought to life in parades and performances with an original multicultural musical score.
Global Grooves producers visited Barcelona in March 2025, with Pau Reig and Dolors Sans joining a Manchester residency from 21–27 July 2025.
Bee for Barcelonais commissioned by XTRAX for MCRxLaMerce2025. Supported by Manchester City Council, Arts Council England and XTRAX. Funded by Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), GM Arts, Oldham Council, and Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council.
Following its premiere at La Mercè 2025, Queen Bee Gigante and Worker Bee will return for Manchester Day in July 2026.
The Ultimate Player’s Handbook
Manchester’s leading contemporary dance companyCompany Chameleon has been commissioned to create a new dance performance, The Ultimate Player’s Handbook, for La Mercè with Barcelona dance duo Clémentine & Lisard
In the heart of a town’s square, a living handbook unfolds — one written not on paper, but in movement, strategy, and play.
The Ultimate Player’s Handbook is a vibrant street performance that explores the games we play every day – where rules are made and broken, roles shift between winner and loser, and cooperation is as vital as competition.
Co-directed by Company Chameleon (UK) and Clémentine & Lisard (CAT), the piece transforms public space into a playground where teams form, alliances shift, and every move asks us to reflect on the parts we play.
With music, dance, and celebration, this handbook in motion invites us to question: how do we navigate rules – and how do we bring a sense of playfulness in our everyday lives?
Barcelona-based Clémentine & Lisard have spent the last two weeks in Manchester (14-25 July) to create this new choreographed performance with two of Company Chameleon’s dancers and Artistic Director Kevin Turner, MBE, at Company Chameleon’s studios in Gorton.
Kevin Turner, MBE, Artistic Director of Company Chameleon said: “International collaboration has always been at the heart of Chameleon’s work, and we’re delighted to be working with Clémentine & Lisard. The commission allows us to work with a really exciting and innovative Barcelona based dance company and create something new and interesting. The collaboration gives us the chance to learn from each other, explore commonalities in our practice, and share and benefit from each other’s touring networks.”
Blending the athletic and emotionally rich movement styles of both groups, the work will debut at La Mercè in Barcelona on 24, 27, and 28 September 2025 and return for Manchester Day 2026.
The Ultimate Players’ Handbook is commissioned by XTRAX and the Institut de Cultura de Barcelona and funded by Arts Council England and Manchester City Council.
Barcelona Bee Hive
Another World Premiere, Barcelona Bee Hive will also be created especially for Manchester at La Mercè.
Artizani is a UK-based arts company specialising in spectacular theatre performed in unconventional spaces. One of Europe’s most stylish and striking street theatre acts, their work is accessible and thought-provoking, featuring high production values and a surreal twist.
The bee is the symbol of Manchester – historically representing its hard-working, unified community, and more recently serving as a powerful emblem of unity and resilience.
Audiences are invited to wander among the honey-perfumed colony, tended by ethereal beekeepers, and peer into surreal miniature worlds of ‘working’ wonder. In a specially commissioned new bee hive, created to celebrate Manchester at La Mercè, visitors can see Mancunian bees enjoying scenes from traditional Catalan festivities.
Barcelona Bee Hive is commissioned by XTRAX and funded by Arts Council England and Manchester City Council.
OUR CITY SPEAKS – poetry films from Manchester
Another unique project developed especially for Manchester’s programme at La Mercè that celebrates Manchester’s wealth of poets and spoken word artists working in a wide range of diverse styles and languages.
A captivating curated selection of short films featuring some of the city’s current leading poetry performers will take viewers on a journey through poetry that talks about identity, unity, resistance, and resilience.
Jo Flynn, Director of External Affairs, Manchester City of Literature said: “Barcelona and Manchester already share cultural ties as sister UNESCO Cities of Literature, and in many ways their dynamic cultural identity and literary boldness align too. We’re thrilled at Manchester City of Literature to be part of La Mercè programme celebrating this partnership with Manchester poetry films on stage for the festival in September. We can’t wait to see where the partnership between the cities will take us next, across all artforms.”
Manchester UNESCO City of Literature has curated this collection to share with Catalan audiences in Manchester’s sister UNESCO City of Literature during La Mercè.
The project builds on Manchester City of Literature’s strong relationship with Barcelona City of Literature which has seen a number of artistic exchanges. The partnership between the two UNESCO Cities of Literature has seen Manchester novelists, poets and performers featured at Barcelona Literary festivals throughout 2025, in celebration of La Mercè. Barcelona poets will be commissioned to help translate the work of the Manchester poets into Catalan, so the works can be understood by local audiences and a number of Catalan poets will be invited to share work about Barcelona in Manchester in 2026.
The project has been commissioned by XTRAX, funded by Manchester City Council and Arts Council England, and is delivered in partnership with Manchester City of Literature and Barcelona City of Literature.
Fire Garden by Walk The Plank
Walk the Plank, one of the UK’s leading outdoor arts specialists, will bring their acclaimed Fire Garden installation to Trinitat Park for La Mercè 2025. Known for creating ambitious public celebrations and immersive outdoor spectacles for over thirty years, the company will transform the park into a glowing landscape of metal, fire and music created by local musicians in Barcelona.
Liz Pugh, Creative Producer for the Fire Garden, said: “We’re delighted to be bringing some Mancunian magic to La Mercè, and particularly excited to see how our installation of kinetic fire sculptures animate Parc de la Trinitat in a new and different way. To be invited to bring UK work to the heart of the Catalan cultural festival is an honour indeed.”
Walk the Plank will be working with students recruited from local colleges, offering the opportunity for young people from Barcelona and elsewhere to work alongside the company’s professional fire technicians.
Liz added: “Investing in the talent of the next generation is important to us, and we seek to provide opportunities for young people to gain experience. The chance to work alongside international artists is valuable for young people: they can gain new skills and expand their ideas of what is possible through culture. We look forward to welcoming some of the Catalan artists, the musicians and the students to Manchester next year too – let’s find a way to repay the warm invitation which the city of Barcelona and MAC festival are offering to us.”
The Manchester Guest City music programme at La Mercè is presented by Manchester Music City, led by Brighter Sound.
Kate Lowes, Director, Brighter Sound (sector lead Manchester Music City) said: “We’re thrilled to announce such an exciting group of artists representing Manchester at La Mercè 2025 – Children of Zeus, Chloe Slater, Clara la San, Porij, Ríoghnach Connolly and Honeyfeet, and Space Afrika – a powerful showcase of the city’s rich and genre-defying music scene. We’re also proud to be supporting a brand-new musical collaboration between Manchester’s Werkha and Catalan artist Queralt Lahoz, which will premiere at the festival. As a member of the Music Cities Network, Manchester is proudly international in its musical outlook. This is a fantastic opportunity to deepen creative exchange between Manchester and Barcelona, and to celebrate our shared love of music on an international stage.”
International SpeakersPanel Discussions and Professional Networking Events
Alongside the outdoor performance programme at La Mercè there will also be a number of panel discussions and networking events exploring the importance of outdoor festivals in giving visibility to cultural communities and bringing people together.
These discussions will include international speakers and policy makers and will be attended by festival organisers, local authorities, artists and producers from across Europe. These events are a prelude to Mondiacult, the world’s biggest cultural policy conference for the member states of UNESCO taking place in Barcelona from 29 September – 1 October 2025.
This programme has been organised by XTRAX, Without Walls, La Mercè, ICEC Catalan Arts and Unlimited, with support from British Council and the British Embassy in Spain.
The Manchester guest city programme at La Mercè is being supported by Arts Council England through a grant to producers XTRAX.
Jen Cleary, Director North West, Arts Council England said: “We’re proud to be supporting Manchester’s Guest City programme at La Mercè in Barcelona this September. Not only will it create opportunities for talented Mancunian artists to showcase their work on an international stage, but it is a shining example of how arts and culture can support greater connections and dialogue between cities and communities across the world. La Mercè is a major event in the European outdoor arts calendar and we can’t wait to see Manchester take pride of place as the Festival’s Guest City.”
DALLAS, July 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The Mark Cuban Foundation today announced significant updates and a nationwide expansion of its free AI Bootcamps, designed to bring advanced artificial intelligence education to underserved high school students and educators. The program will operate in 29 cities across the U.S. this fall, reinforcing the foundation’s commitment to closing the digital divide and nurturing future innovators.
Applications are now open for high school students (grades 9–12) and educators interested in the Teacher Bootcamp, a year-long, free professional development initiative. The AI Bootcamps are open to all high school students, and prioritize accepting girls, students of color, first-generation college-goers, and students from low-income backgrounds. Applications will be accepted through September 30, 2025.
“As AI becomes an integral part of daily life, it’s essential that all young people have access to this powerful technology,” said Mark Cuban, Founder of the Mark Cuban Foundation. “Our goal is to ensure that every interested student, regardless of background or resources, can explore AI and its limitless possibilities.”
The updated curriculum includes hands-on experience with generative AI tools, modules on ethical AI, and specialized tracks covering healthcare, arts and entertainment, business and entrepreneurship, computer science, sports science, and future readiness. Participants will complete capstone projects under mentorship from industry professionals. Additionally, each location will now have a dedicated Teacher Fellow to further enhance educational outcomes and community involvement. Applications for the Teacher Fellowship program open in January.
All student bootcamps will take place over three Saturdays (November 1, 8, and 15, 2025, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.), with meals, transportation assistance, and technology provided at no cost.
Charlotte Dungan, Chief Learning Officer at the Mark Cuban Foundation, emphasized, “By equipping underserved students and educators with practical AI skills and ethical insights, we’re actively working toward equity in education and preparing young people for the future.”
Confirmed 2025 Bootcamp Locations:
Arizona: Tempe
California: Mountain View
Colorado: Denver
Connecticut: Hartford
Florida: Melbourne, Miami
Georgia: Atlanta
Illinois: Chicago
Indiana: Fort Wayne, Indianapolis
Iowa: Johnston (Des Moines area)
Kansas: Hutchinson
Michigan: Pontiac
Minnesota: Minneapolis
Missouri: St. Louis
Nebraska: Omaha
New York: New York City
North Carolina: Charlotte, Raleigh
Ohio: Cleveland
Pennsylvania: Philadelphia, Pittsburgh
Rhode Island: Providence
Texas: Houston, Richardson, San Antonio, Plano
Utah: Salt Lake City
Virginia: Richmond
Key local partnerships include Girls Inc. in San Antonio, Miami Dade College in Florida, Electric Works in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and Perficient in St. Louis, Minneapolis, and Plano, TX.
Since 2019, the Mark Cuban Foundation AI Bootcamp has successfully provided AI education to thousands of students in over 30 cities nationwide. The Teacher Fellowship, which began in March 2025 and runs through May 2026, supports 30 selected educators with stipends, mentorship, and national opportunities to showcase their achievements. Teacher Bootcamps have participants in 48 states and impact over 100,000 students.
Interested students and educators can apply for bootcamps now at markcubanai.org.
Companies interested in hosting a future bootcamp can complete our interest form.
Watch Mark Cuban’s message about Mark Cuban Foundation’s AI bootcamps and access the full media kit here.
This bootcamp is facilitated with support from Mark Cuban Foundation AI Bootcamp Program’s media partner, Notified, a globally trusted technology partner for investor relations, public relations and marketing professionals.
About Mark Cuban Foundation’s AI Bootcamp Initiative The Mark Cuban Foundation is a 501(c)(3) private non-profit led by entrepreneur and investor Mark Cuban. The AI Bootcamps Program at MCF seeks to inspire young people with emerging technology so that they can create more equitable futures for themselves and their communities. Over 3 consecutive Saturdays, underserved 9th – 12th grade students learn what AI is and isn’t, where they already interact with AI in their own lives, the ethical implications of AI systems, and much more. Learn more about the no-cost AI Bootcamp program at markcubanai.org.
ATLANTA, July 24, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta (the Bank) today released preliminary unaudited financial highlights for the quarter ended June 30, 2025. All numbers reported below for the second quarter of 2025 are approximate until the Bank announces unaudited financial results in its Form 10-Q, which is expected to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on or about August 8, 2025.
Operating Results for the Second Quarter of 2025
Net interest income for the second quarter of 2025 was $212 million, a decrease of $29 million, compared to net interest income of $241 million for the same period in 2024. The decrease in net interest income was primarily due to a decrease in interest rates, as well as a decrease in average advance balances during the second quarter of 2025, compared to the same period in 2024.
Net income for the second quarter of 2025 was $141 million, a decrease of $36 million, compared to net income of $177 million for the same period in 2024. The decrease in net income was primarily due to the decrease in net interest income and a $10 million increase in voluntary housing and community investment contributions.
During the second quarter of 2025, the Bank continued to meet members’ liquidity demand and average advance balances were $103.1 billion, compared to average advance balances of $106.6 billion for the same period in 2024.
The net yield on interest-earning assets for the second quarter of 2025 was 54 basis points, compared to 61 basis points for the same period in 2024. Many of the Bank’s assets and liabilities are indexed to the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR). Average daily SOFR during the second quarter of 2025 was 4.32 percent compared to 5.32 percent for the same period in 2024.
The Bank’s second quarter 2025 performance resulted in an annualized return on average equity (ROE) of 6.43 percent as compared to 8.12 percent for the same period in 2024. The decrease in ROE was primarily due to the decrease in net income for the second quarter of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024.
Financial Condition Highlights
Total assets were $146.4 billion as of June 30, 2025, a decrease of $719 million from December 31, 2024.
Advances outstanding were $90.9 billion as of June 30, 2025, an increase of $5.0 billion from December 31, 2024.
Total capital was $8.3 billion as of June 30, 2025, an increase of $324 million from December 31, 2024. Retained earnings were $2.9 billion as of June 30, 2025, an increase of $88 million from December 31, 2024.
As of June 30, 2025, the Bank was in compliance with all applicable regulatory capital and liquidity requirements.
Reliable Source of Liquidity
During the first six months of 2025, the Bank originated a total of $168.2 billion of advances, thereby providing significant liquidity to its members to support lending and other activities in their communities. The Bank is proud to continue to execute on its mission to be a reliable source of liquidity and funding for its members, while remaining adequately capitalized.
Commitment to Affordable Housing and Community Development
The Bank commits 10 percent of its income before assessments to support the affordable housing and community development needs of communities served by its members as required by law, which amounted to $77 million for the 2024 statutory Affordable Housing Program (AHP) assessment available for funding in 2025. As of June 30, 2025, the Bank has accrued $32 million to its statutory AHP pool of funds that will be available to the Bank’s members and their communities in 2026 for funding of eligible projects.
The Bank has committed to voluntarily contribute, at a minimum, an additional 50 percent of its prior year statutory AHP assessment to affordable housing. For 2025, the Bank authorized $41 million in voluntary housing contributions consisting of $9 million in voluntary non-statutory AHP contributions and $32 million in voluntary non-AHP contributions. These amounts are anticipated to be expensed during 2025.
Since the inception of its AHP in 1990, the Bank has awarded more than $1.2 billion in AHP funds, assisting more than 177,000 households.
Dividends
On July 24, 2025, the board of directors of the Bank approved a quarterly cash dividend at an annualized rate of 6.60 percent.
“Our cooperative model enables FHLBank Atlanta to fulfill our mission of providing reliable liquidity in any economic climate and it fuels our grants for affordable housing and community development,” said FHLBank Atlanta Chair of the Board, Thornwell Dunlap. We appreciate our members’ engagement and are pleased to deliver a strong dividend for the second quarter.”
The dividend payout will be calculated based on members’ capital stock held during the second quarter of 2025 and will be credited to members’ daily investment accounts at the close of business on July 29, 2025.
Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta Financial Highlights (Preliminary and unaudited) (Dollars in millions)
Statements of Condition
As of June 30, 2025
As of December 31, 2024
Advances
$
90,867
$
85,829
Investments
54,283
60,084
Mortgage loans held for portfolio, net
84
89
Total assets
146,372
147,091
Total consolidated obligations, net
134,406
135,851
Total capital stock
5,397
5,148
Retained earnings
2,873
2,785
Accumulated other comprehensive loss
(13
)
—
Total capital
8,257
7,933
Capital-to-assets ratio (GAAP)
5.64
%
5.39
%
Capital-to-assets ratio (Regulatory)
5.65
%
5.39
%
Three Months Ended June 30,
Six Months Ended June 30,
Operating Results and Performance Ratios
2025
2024
2025
2024
Net interest income
$
212
$
241
$
419
$
495
Standby letters of credit fees
5
4
9
8
Other income
—
1
1
3
Total noninterest expense(1)
60
50
113
94
Affordable Housing Program assessment
16
19
32
41
Net income
141
177
284
371
Return on average assets
0.36
%
0.44
%
0.37
%
0.47
%
Return on average equity
6.43
%
8.12
%
6.62
%
8.67
%
__________ (1) Total noninterest expense includes voluntary housing and community investment contributions of $20 million and $31 million for the second quarter and first six months of 2025, compared to $10 million and $15 million for the same periods in 2024, respectively.
The selected financial data above should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and notes and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included in the Bank’s Second Quarter 2025 Form 10-Q expected to be filed with the SEC on or about August 8, 2025, and can be obtained at https://corp.fhlbatl.com/who-we-are/investor-relations/ and on www.sec.gov.
About Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta
FHLBank Atlanta offers competitively-priced financing, community development grants, and other banking services to help member financial institutions make affordable home mortgages and provide economic development credit to neighborhoods and communities. The Bank is a cooperative whose members are commercial banks, credit unions, savings institutions, community development financial institutions, and insurance companies located in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. FHLBank Atlanta is one of 11 district banks in the Federal Home Loan Bank System (FHLBank System).
For more information, visit our website at www.fhlbatl.com.
To the extent that the statements made in this announcement may be deemed as “forward-looking statements”, they are made within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which include statements with respect to the Bank’s beliefs, plans, objectives, goals, expectations, anticipations, assumptions, estimates, intentions, and future performance, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which may be beyond the Bank’s control, and which may cause the Bank’s actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from the future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, and the reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on them, since those may not be realized due to a variety of factors, including, without limitation: legislative, regulatory and accounting actions, changes, approvals or requirements; completion of the Bank’s financial closing procedures and final accounting adjustments for the most recently completed quarter; SOFR variations; changes to economic, liquidity and market conditions; changes in demand for advances, advance levels, consolidated obligations of the Bank and/or the FHLBank System and their market; changes in interest rates; changes in prepayment speeds, default rates, delinquencies, and losses on mortgage-backed securities; volatility of market prices, rates and indices that could affect the value of financial instruments; changes in credit ratings and/or the terms of derivative transactions; changes in product offerings; political, national, climate, and world events; disruptions in information systems; membership changes; mergers and acquisitions involving members; changes to the Bank’s voluntary housing program and other adverse developments or events, including extraordinary or disruptive events, affecting the market, involving other Federal Home Loan Banks, their members or the FHLBank System in general, including acts or war and terrorism. Additional factors that might cause the Bank’s results to differ from forward-looking statements are provided in detail in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are available at www.sec.gov.
The forward-looking statements in this release speak only as of the date that they are made, and the Bank has no obligation and does not undertake to publicly update, revise, or correct any of these statements after the date of this announcement, or after the respective dates on which such statements otherwise are made, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required by law. New factors may emerge, and it is not possible for us to predict the nature of each new factor, or assess its potential impact, on our business and financial condition. Given these uncertainties, we caution you not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.
CONTACT: Sheryl Touchton Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta stouchton@fhlbatl.com 404.716.4296
Source: United States Senator for South Carolina Lindsey Graham
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) and John Cornyn (R-Texas), both senior members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, today called on U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to appoint a special counsel to investigate the Obama Administration’s involvement in the Russia collusion hoax.
“For the good of the country, we urge Attorney General Bondi to appoint a special counsel to investigate the extent to which former President Obama, his staff and administration officials manipulated the U.S. national security apparatus for a political outcome.
“As we have supported in the past, appointing an independent special counsel would do the country a tremendous service in this case.
“With every piece of information that gets released, it becomes more evident that the entire Russia collusion hoax was created by the Obama Administration to subvert the will of the American people.
“Democrats and the liberal media have been out to get President Trump since 2016. There must be an immediate investigation of what we believe to be an unprecedented and clear abuse of power by a U.S. presidential administration.”
Background:
Last week, Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard released evidence demonstrating that former President Barack Obama and his national security staff manipulated information from the intelligence community in order to insinuate that Russia was attempting to help then-candidate Donald Trump win the 2016 presidential election, including:
In the months leading up to the November 2016 election, the Intelligence Community (IC) assessed that Russia is “probably not trying … to influence the election by using cyber means.”
On December 7, 2016, after the election, talking points were prepared for DNI James Clapper stating, “Foreign adversaries did not use cyberattacks on election infrastructure to alter the US Presidential election outcome.”
A declassified copy of the Presidential Daily Brief, which was prepared using intelligence from the CIA, Defense Intelligence Agency, FBI, National Security Agency, Department of Homeland Security, State Department, and open sources, for Obama on December 8, 2016, assessed that “Russian and criminal actors did not impact recent US election results by conducting malicious cyber activities against election infrastructure.”
That Presidential Daily Brief was scheduled to be published on December 9, 2016, but communications revealed that DNI Clapper’s office stopped its publication “based on some new guidance”.
On December 9, 2016, Obama gathered top National Security Council Principals for a meeting in the Situation Room that included James Clapper, John Brennan, Susan Rice, John Kerry, Loretta Lynch, Andrew McCabe and others, to discuss Russia.
After the meeting, DNI Clapper’s Executive Assistant sent an email to IC leaders tasking them with creating a new IC assessment “per the President’s request”that details the “tools Moscow used and actions it took to influence the 2016 election.” It went on to say, “ODNI will lead this effort with participation from CIA, FBI, NSA, and DHS.”
Obama officials leaked false statements to media outlets, including The Washington Post and The New York Times, claiming, “Russia has attempted through cyber means to interfere in, if not actively influence, the outcome of an election.”
On January 6, 2017, a new Intelligence Community Assessment was released.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Commodity Futures Trading Commission announced today the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington has resolved all claims the CFTC filed in its September 2024 complaint against Qian Bai and Chao Li, both residents of the People’s Republic of China, their co-conspirator Lan Bai, a resident of Oklahoma, as well as Aipu Limited and Fidefx Investments Ltd., which were both United Kingdom private limited companies. [See CFTC Press Release No. 8987-24]. The court found that the defendants, while acting as a common enterprise, operated fraudulent websites that purported to allow customers to trade for over 18 months and fraudulently solicited and misappropriated at least $3,630,849 from at least 34 customers in connection with the sale of agreements, contracts or transactions in leveraged or margined retail commodity transactions, off-exchange retail foreign currency contracts, and commodity futures contracts. On July 14, the court entered an order against Lan Bai requiring her to pay, jointly and severally, a $699,534 civil monetary penalty and restitution of $233,178 to defrauded victims for her role in the fraudulent scheme. On May 22, the court entered a default judgment against Qian Bai, Li, Aipu Limited, and Fidefx, which requires them to pay, jointly and severally, a $13,863,170 civil monetary penalty and restitution of $4,621,056. The default judgment also imposes permanent injunctions against them and bans them from trading in any CFTC-regulated markets, entering into any transactions involving commodity interests, and registering with the CFTC. Previously, the CFTC and Lan Bai entered into a consent order which imposes a permanent injunction against her and bans her from trading in any CFTC-regulated markets, entering into any transactions involving commodity interests, and registering with the CFTC. The CFTC cautions that orders requiring repayment of funds to victims may not result in the recovery of any money lost because the wrongdoers may not have sufficient funds or assets. The CFTC will continue to fight vigorously for the protection of customers and to ensure the wrongdoers are held accountable. Division of Enforcement staff responsible for this case are Karen Kenmotsu, George H. Malas, Michael Amakor, Chrystal Gonnella, Timothy J. Mulreany, and Paul G. Hayeck. * * * * * * CFTC’s Fraud Advisory The CFTC has issued several customer protection fraud advisories, including Avoid Forex, Precious Metals, and Digital Asset Romance Scams, which warns users of online dating and social media platforms about an increase in scams that lure victims into sending their money to fraudulent websites that claim to trade foreign currency exchange (forex) contracts, precious metals contracts, and/or digital assets. The CFTC also strongly urges the public to verify a company’s registration with the CFTC at NFA BASIC before committing funds. If unregistered, a customer should be wary of providing funds to that entity. Report suspicious activities or information, such as possible violations of commodity trading laws, to the Division of Enforcement via a toll-free hotline 866-FON-CFTC (866-366-2382) or file a tip or complaint online or contact the Whistleblower Office. Whistleblowers are eligible to receive between 10 and 30 percent of the monetary sanctions collected, paid from the Customer Protection Fund financed through monetary sanctions paid to the CFTC by violators of the CEA.
Societe Generale announces that it has carried out a capital decrease through the cancellation of treasury shares and successfully completed a capital increase as part of the 32nd Global Employee Share Ownership Programme.
Capital decrease through cancellation of treasury shares
On 10 July 2025, the Board of Directors, upon authorization of the Extraordinary General Meeting of 22 May 2024, decided to reduce Societe Generale’s share capital by cancellation of 22,667,515 treasury shares as of 24 July 2025, i.e. 2.8% of the share capital. These shares were repurchased from 10 February to 8 April 2025 included for the purpose of cancellation for an amount of EUR 872 million.
This amount of share buy-back and the amount of the resulting capital decrease have been determined by the Board of Directors in application of the distribution policy to shareholders for the 2024 financial year. This amount was also determined primarily to fully offset, for shareholders not participating in it, the dilutive impact of the capital increase of the 32nd Global Employee Share Ownership Programme.
Capital increase as part of the Global Employee Share Ownership Programme
On 24 July 2025, the Chief Executive Officer, upon authorization of the Extraordinary General Meeting of 22 May 2024, and delegation of the Board of Directors, noted the completion of the capital increase following the 2025 Global Employee Share Ownership Programme. The capital increase amounts to a total of EUR 269,310,884.40 and has resulted in the issuance of 7,531,065 new shares, i.e. 0.97% of the share capital after the share capital decrease carried out as a consequence of the previously mentioned share buy-back or 0.94% of the share capital prior to this decrease.
The positive impact of this capital increase on the CET1 ratio will be around 7 basis points and will be effective in the capital ratio at the end of Q3 25.
Approximately 51,000 Group employees and eligible retired former employees in 31 countries have subscribed to this transaction.
Employee share ownership is a collective programme at Societe Generale to involve employees in the development of the company and to enable them to benefit from long-term value creation.
New amount of share capital
Following these two transactions, the share capital of Societe Generale is EUR 981,475,408.75, divided into 785,180,327 shares with a nominal value of EUR 1.25 each.
Societe Generale is a top tier European Bank with around 119,000 employees serving more than 26 million clients in 62 countries across the world. We have been supporting the development of our economies for 160 years, providing our corporate, institutional, and individual clients with a wide array of value-added advisory and financial solutions. Our long-lasting and trusted relationships with the clients, our cutting-edge expertise, our unique innovation, our ESG capabilities and leading franchises are part of our DNA and serve our most essential objective – to deliver sustainable value creation for all our stakeholders.
The Group runs three complementary sets of businesses, embedding ESG offerings for all its clients:
French Retail, Private Banking and Insurance, with leading retail bank SG and insurance franchise, premium private banking services, and the leading digital bank BoursoBank.
Global Banking and Investor Solutions, a top tier wholesale bank offering tailored-made solutions with distinctive global leadership in equity derivatives, structured finance and ESG.
Mobility, International Retail Banking and Financial Services, comprising well-established universal banks (in Czech Republic, Romania and several African countries), Ayvens (the new ALD I LeasePlan brand), a global player in sustainable mobility, as well as specialized financing activities.
Committed to building together with its clients a better and sustainable future, Societe Generale aims to be a leading partner in the environmental transition and sustainability overall. The Group is included in the principal socially responsible investment indices: DJSI (Europe), FTSE4Good (Global and Europe), Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index, Refinitiv Diversity and Inclusion Index, Euronext Vigeo (Europe and Eurozone), STOXX Global ESG Leaders indexes, and the MSCI Low Carbon Leaders Index (World and Europe).
In case of doubt regarding the authenticity of this press release, please go to the end of the Group News page on societegenerale.com website where official Press Releases sent by Societe Generale can be certified using blockchain technology. A link will allow you to check the document’s legitimacy directly on the web page.
Source: United States Senator Peter Welch (D-Vermont)
Welch calls on the U.S. to negotiate a successor to the New START Treaty
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) this week took to the Senate Floor to urge the United States to reaffirm its commitment to pursue a world free of nuclear weapons. Senator Welch warned the threat of a new nuclear arms race is looming with the imminent expiration of the New START Treaty.
“In the 1980s, thanks to negotiators in both countries, the United States and Russia curtailed an unrestrained nuclear arms race that led to the deployment of staggering numbers of increasingly destructive weapons that could not rationally be justified for deterrence or any other purpose. The START Treaty and New START were historic achievements—bipartisan achievements,” said Senator Welch. “I would like to think that President Trump was serious when he spoke of the need for the U.S., Russia, and China to stop building more nuclear weapons. But even modest steps to reduce the chance of a catastrophic mistake or miscalculation resulting in the use of nuclear weapons should be among our highest national priorities.”
Watch Senator Welch’s speech below:
On the 80th anniversary of the Trinity test, Senator Welch joined Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) in introducing a resolution urging the United States to lead the world to halt and reverse the nuclear arms race.
Learn more about Senator Welch’s work by visiting his website or by following him on social media.
