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  • MIL-OSI Global: Ontario Chief Coroner reports raise concerns that MAID policy and practice focus on access rather than protection

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Trudo Lemmens, Professor of Health Law and Policy, University of Toronto

    The Ontario Coroner’s reports cover two aspects of medical assistance in dying (MAID): waiver of final consent, and same- or next-day provision of MAID. (Shutterstock)

    The Chief Coroner for Ontario recently released two new reports of its interdisciplinary MAID Death Review Committee: on Same or Next Day Provision of MAID and on Waiver of Final Consent.

    The MAID Death Review Committee — of which I am a member — reviews cases of Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) that are selected by the coroner’s MAID team for the common issues they raise. The review helps inform policy recommendations.

    Committee reports contain case summaries and summaries of committee discussions, and the Chief Coroner’s recommendations. The newly released reports appear to confirm what is argued in several chapters in our recently co-edited volume, Unravelling MAiD in Canada: Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide as Medical Care, and in other publications: Canada’s MAID law, policy and practice focuses excessively on promoting access to death, not on protection.

    Some of the cases suggest a troubling prioritizing of ending patients’ lives with MAID rather than a precautionary approach. In my opinion, they reveal an urgent need for more rigorous legal and professional standards. Committee members’ starkly contrasting views on the ethics of some of the practices, which can be gleaned from the anonymous summaries of the committee’s discussions, are striking.

    Most assisted dying laws or policies in other countries prohibit same-day provision of MAID and waiving of final consent.
    (Shutterstock)

    Access over protection

    The topics of the reports illustrate how Canada’s MAID law reform has prioritized access over protection. Most assisted dying laws or policies in other countries prohibit same-day provision of MAID and waiving of final consent. Many impose a reflection period to protect patients against rushed and desperate decision-making, for example following a devastating diagnosis.

    Before 2021, Canada’s MAID law had a 10-day reflection period, which could be shortened by request. This was removed in the 2021 expansion of MAID, which also removed the safeguard of a reasonably foreseeable natural death.

    At the time, concerns that removing the 10-day reflection period could lead to rushed decisions were dismissed, with a hypothetical example involving same-day MAID provision being described as “absurd.” An official report now documents the practice.

    Waiver of final consent, which was also introduced in 2021, moves Canada clearly away from unambiguous or clear consent, which the Supreme Court emphasized as a key safeguard in its 2015 Carter decision — the decision that declared an absolute criminal law prohibition on euthanasia and assisted suicide to be unconstitutional.

    A waiver enables track 1 patients (those with a reasonably foreseeable death) who are at risk of losing capacity to receive MAID at a specific time in the near future. In contrast, with an advance request for MAID, a patient authorizes someone else to request MAID on their behalf in the future, when they have lost capacity and specified conditions are met.

    Québec recently introduced advanced requests, and Health Canada has organized public consultations on the topic, seemingly considering it. But it remains prohibited under the Criminal Code. Rightly so, since it raises unique ethical, legal and professional challenges.

    The coroner’s report on waiver of final consent includes cases, and notes on case discussions, that demonstrate the fine line between flexible use of such waivers and circumventing the prohibition of advance request. In some cases, it appears that different guidance documents of the Canadian Association of MAID Assessors and Providers have been combined to facilitate MAID: guidance on waiver of final consent and on dementia.

    In a journal publication, my co-authors and I warned that combining these guidance documents, which we consider to be obfuscating, could lead to advance requests for MAID even though they remain prohibited under the criminal code.

    Case reports

    Take the case of Mr. A. Distressed by short-term memory loss and a diagnosis of an onset of Alzheimer’s disease, he signed a waiver scheduling MAID 3.5 years later. Some, but not all, members of the committee opined that scheduling it so much in advance was incompatible with a track 1 approval, since it revealed that he was not approaching his death, not in an advanced state of irreversible decline of capability and could hardly be considered to suffer intolerably at the time of approval.

    The MAID provider ended up not using the waiver for Mr. A’s consent for MAID. However, his MAID death remains problematic due to concerns about how the provider accepted he was able to provide final consent.

    Less than a year after signing the waiver, he was hospitalized after a fall. He was deemed delirious, confused and had hallucinations. During “a period of cognitive improvement” the MAID provider deemed him capable of confirming final consent and provided MAID based on the original assessment.

    Family pressures, such as caregiver burnout, need to be sufficiently investigated.
    (Shutterstock)

    Informed consent concerns also arose in the case of 80-year-old Mrs. B, who told a first MAID assessor she preferred palliative care because of personal and religious values. When a palliative care physician noticed her husband’s “caregiver burnout,” he requested hospice care for Mrs. B, which was rejected.

    Her husband then contacted a second MAID assessor, who approved her for MAID and who rejected the first assessor’s request to talk to Mrs. B. the next day. A third assessor confirmed the second assessor’s approval and Mrs. B received MAID the same day.

    The case of Mr. C involved a man in his 70s, diagnosed with metastatic cancer, who requested a MAID assessment five days after admission into palliative care. But before he could be assessed, he experienced cognitive decline and “loss of ability to communicate.”

    When the palliative care team told a MAID provider the next day that he had lost capacity to consent, the provider “vigorously roused Mr. C., who opened his eyes and mouthed ‘yes’” when asked if he wanted MAID. After withholding pain medication for 45 minutes, the provider considered him more “alert.” A second MAID assessor confirmed his eligibility after an online assessment, also accepting mouthing yes, and “nodding his head in presumed agreeance” as clear and capable informed consent, and he was euthanized.

    These and some other cases described in the committee reports raise several concerns. They show how MAID has been provided in cases where assessors clearly disagree about the application of access criteria, with two seemingly limited assessments favouring MAID overriding others.

    Some patients received MAID after capacity and informed consent procedures that appear problematic, in the case of Mr. C overriding a capacity assessment by a treating palliative care team. Family pressures, such as caregiver burnout, may also be insufficiently investigated, as in the case of Mrs. B.

    And MAID appears to have been delivered in the case of Mr. C. when the patient appeared otherwise comfortable in palliative care and may not have had capacity to consent.

    The reports also reveal that even patients specifically hospitalized for suicidal ideation and in need of mental health care are offered MAID, as earlier coroner reports already revealed. Some cases appear to stretch the contours of MAID law.

    Starkly differing views

    The committee discussions included in the report further suggest starkly different views among MAID Death Review Committee members, including on standards for assessing capacity for consent.

    As discussed in a recent study I co-authored, most of Canada’s MAID practice is driven by a relatively small group of frequent providers. The study found that there are 1,837 MAID providers in Canada, but up to 336 of these are frequent providers who are likely responsible for the majority of annual MAID deaths. This adds to concerns about arguably overly flexible provision of MAID among these providers.

    Another committee member recently discussed how the report on same- or next-day provisions reveals this practice is disproportionately present in some geographical locations. This suggests, as others have discussed in relation to Québec’s MAID practice, that there may be starkly different professional standards and approaches among providers.

    To date there have been no known cases of criminal or professional sanctions against a MAID provider. However, the Chief Coroner’s reports, as well as media reports, indicate that this does not mean Canada’s MAID practice is exemplary, safe and compliant. When reading these cases, many likely wonder, as I do, what it will take for political, judicial and professional authorities to provide firmer guidance, investigate thoroughly and put a halt to problematic delivery of MAID.

    The United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, after hearing evidence from both the federal government and civil society organizations, recently urged Canada to withdraw track 2 MAID (MAID cases in which the patient’s death is not reasonably foreseeable), not to introduce MAID for mental illness and with advance requests, and to improve MAID monitoring and safeguards.

    The UN committee cited the earlier coroner reports. The two most recent reports, which the UN committee did not have yet at its disposal, clearly confirm the urgent need for a revisiting of our MAID law, and for refocusing on protection, not on further expansion.

    Trudo Lemmens is a member of the Chief Coroner of Ontario MAID Death Review Committee. He has been an expert witness for the Federal Attorney General in the Truchon and Lamb cases. He has been an advisor to the Vulnerable Person Standard. His research is partly funded by a Scholl Chair in Health Law and Policy. He is co-editor of a McGill/Queens University Press book Unravelling MAID in Canada: Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide as Medical Care.

    – ref. Ontario Chief Coroner reports raise concerns that MAID policy and practice focus on access rather than protection – https://theconversation.com/ontario-chief-coroner-reports-raise-concerns-that-maid-policy-and-practice-focus-on-access-rather-than-protection-253917

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Hoeven: Secretary Rollins Prioritizes Fully Staffing Farm Service Agency, Field Offices

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for North Dakota John Hoeven

    05.08.25

    USDA Application Process for Weather-Based Disaster Aid to Begin in Coming Weeks

    WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven, chairman of the Senate Agriculture Appropriations Committee, this week secured a commitment from Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins to prioritize Farm Service Agency (FSA) staff and field offices to ensure frontline support for the nation’s farmers and ranchers. Additionally, the senator outlined the importance of the $33.5 billion in agriculture disaster aid he secured at the end of the year in providing farmers and ranchers with a bridge as Congress works to improve crop insurance and update reference prices in the next farm bill. Hoeven thanked Secretary Rollins for delivering the $10 billion in market-based agriculture disaster assistance, and continues working with the Secretary to advance the $21 billion in weather-related assistance. Secretary Rollins indicated that USDA’s application process for the weather-based ag aid will open in the coming weeks.

    “We have to make sure we’re getting it done for our farmers and our ranchers every single day. We want to work together to find savings, but we have to know that we’re still going to deliver the service that keeps our family farms and ranches going, to the benefit of every single American,”  said Hoeven. “We appreciate Secretary Rollins making it a priority to fully-staff and keep open FSA offices. These front-line FSA officers are the ones who work directly with our farmers and ranchers and help provide the service they deserve.

    “We secured $33.5 billion to help our producers with challenges, whether it’s markets, whether it’s prices, and certainly always the weather – none of which they control. Secretary Rollins worked to get out the $10 billion in market-based disaster agriculture aid within 90 days, with North Dakota producers having already received about half a billion dollars from that tranche. We want to continue working together to implement the $21 billion weather-based assistance and we appreciate USDA’s commitment to begin that process in the coming weeks,” the senator said.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Winning the AI race: Strengthening U.S. capabilities in computing and innovation

    Source: Microsoft

    Headline: Winning the AI race: Strengthening U.S. capabilities in computing and innovation

    Editor’s note: On Thursday, May 8, Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith testified before the Senate Commerce Committee. To view the proceedings, visit the committee’s website.

     

    Winning the AI Race:
    Strengthening U.S. Capabilities in Computing and Innovation

    Written Testimony of Brad Smith
    Vice Chair and President, Microsoft Corporation

    Senate Commerce Committee

    Chairman Cruz, Ranking Member Cantwell, and Members of the Committee,

    Thank you for the opportunity to testify on the critical issue of artificial intelligence. I am Brad Smith, the Vice Chair and President of Microsoft Corporation.

    AI has the potential to become the most useful tool for people ever invented. Like the general purpose technologies that preceded it, such as electricity, machine tools, and digital computing, AI will impact every part of our economy. It will shape not just how we work and live, but how we compete, prosper, and stay secure as a nation between now and the middle of this century.

    The notice for this hearing aptly refers to an “AI race.” I would like to talk today about what is needed to win this race.

    The AI race involves both technology and economics. It requires both innovation and diffusion. It is both a sprint and a marathon. The country can win a lap but lose the race if it fails to bring together all the ingredients needed for success.

    It is a race that no company or country can win by itself.

    To win the AI race, the United States will need to support the private sector at every layer of the AI tech stack. The nation will need to partner with American allies and friends around the world.

    In my testimony today, I will focus on three strategic priorities where this Congress and the federal government will make a difference.

    First, the country must win the AI innovation race. This will require massive datacenters and AI infrastructure that need federal support to expand and modernize the electrical grid on which they depend. The country must recruit and train skilled labor like electricians and pipefitters that are in short supply. We all must summon the best of our researchers at national labs and universities, supported by federal basic research programs and partnerships that have become the envy of the world. We will need to continue to excel in moving innovative ideas from academic labs into companies and new products. And we will need to support AI developers with open and broad access to public data.

    Second, the nation must win the AI diffusion race. This will require that we promote broad AI adoption that will enable productivity growth across every sector of the economy. More than anything, this requires new initiatives to promote the AI skilling of the American workforce. This will involve basic AI fluency in our schools and new AI training programs in our community colleges. It will also include advanced AI education that will represent the next generation of computer science degrees, organizational skills that will be mastered in the country’s business schools, and new courses in the nation’s law schools. When combined, these will enable companies, non-profits, and government agencies alike to put AI to effective use. Governments at the federal, state, and local levels can then help accelerate this diffusion by adopting AI services to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the services they provide to the public.

    Third, the United States must export AI to American allies and friends. No company or country is so powerful that it can master the future of AI without friends. The United States and China are competing not only to innovate but to spread their respective technologies to other countries. This part of the race likely will be won by the fastest first mover. The United States needs a smart export control strategy that protects our national security while assuring other countries that they will have reliable and sustained access to critical American AI components and services. Perhaps as much as anything, this requires that we collectively sustain international trust in our products, our companies, and the country itself.

    AI as a General Purpose Technology

    Economists sometimes put technologies into two categories, general purpose technologies and single-purpose tools. Most things in the world are single-purpose tools, like a smoke detector or a lawn mower. They do one thing very well. But over the course of history, certain so-called general purpose technologies impact and sometimes even redefine almost every sector of the economy. Electricity is the prototypical example, because when you think about it, electricity changed the way every economic sector works.

    The key to mastering the future of AI starts in part by understanding the role technology has played in the past. The past three centuries have brought the world three industrial revolutions, each driven by these general purpose technologies. First, it was iron working in the United Kingdom, starting in the 1700s. And then it was electricity and machine tools in the 1800s, when the United States overtook the United Kingdom by putting these technologies to work more broadly than any other country. And then there was the third industrial revolution during the last 50 years, driven by computer chips and software.

    Without question, being a global leader in advancing a general purpose technology gives a country a major edge. But one lesson of history is that the countries that benefit the most and advance the fastest are not necessarily the countries where the technology is invented. Rather, it’s where the technology is diffused – or adopted – the most quickly and broadly. This is for good reason. If a technology improves productivity and changes every part of an economy, then the country that uses it the most broadly and quickly will benefit the most.

    This both frames and defines the AI opportunity and challenge for the United States. As a nation, we need to focus both on advancing innovation and driving diffusion, both domestically and as a leading American export.

    The AI Tech Stack

    The key to driving both innovation and diffusion is to recognize that AI, like all general purpose technologies, is built on what we in the industry call a tech stack – a stack of technologies that are used together. This is true for every great general purpose technology. You can see this, for example, if we go back in time and think about electricity. Thomas Edison first succeeded in 1878 in using electricity to light a lightbulb. But the illumination of lights across a city quickly required the construction of power plants, the fuel to run them, the creation of an electrical grid, the standardization of circuits, and a wide range of electrical appliances beyond the lightbulb itself. In short, a tech stack for electricity.

    Artificial intelligence similarly is built on an AI tech stack. Fundamentally, it is divided into three layers, infrastructure, the platform layer, and applications. You can see this illustrated below.

    The infrastructure layer is massive. Microsoft is spending more than $80 billion this fiscal year on the capital investment needed for this layer, with more than half this amount being spent in the United States. This goes to buying land, investing in electricity and broadband connectivity, procuring chips like GPUs, and installing liquid cooling. These lead to the construction of datacenters – or often datacenter campuses with many buildings with potentially hundreds of thousands of computers. This infrastructure supports both the training of new AI models and their deployment, so they can be used for AI-based services around the world.

    On top of this infrastructure, there is the platform layer. The heart of this layer consists of AI foundation models, including frontier models created by companies like OpenAI, as well as open source and other models from a wide variety of other firms – including Anthropic, Google, Mistral, DeepSeek, and Microsoft itself. The platform layer relies on data to train and ground models. And it includes a new generation of software-based AI platform services that are used to help build AI applications.

    Ultimately, both the infrastructure and platform layers support the applications layer. These are devices and software applications that use AI to deliver better services to people. ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Copilot are both examples of AI applications. One of the amazing things about the applications layer is it’s not just companies – large or small or established or startup – that are creating AI applications. It’s everybody. It’s researchers using new AI-infused applications to change drug discovery. It’s non-profits changing the way they deliver services. It’s teachers using AI as a tool to improve the way they prepare material for a classroom. It’s governments making everything from the filing of a tax return to the renewal of a driver’s license easier and more efficient.

    To build a new AI economy, it’s critical to get all three of these layers working and to get a flywheel turning across the ecosystem. It’s essential to build the infrastructure layer so people can develop and deploy the models at the platform layer. It’s essential to use the AI models so that people will build the applications on top of them. And it’s essential for customers to adopt the applications, so the market can grow, and drive increased investment to expand the infrastructure further. The process repeats itself. This is how a new economy is born.

    Success Requires an Entire Ecosystem

    The flywheel effect makes clear that success requires not only national progress at one layer of the tech stack, but at every layer. That is what the private sector currently is pursuing in the United States better than in any other country. And it’s what this Congress and the Executive Branch can help support with a strategy that promotes both AI innovation and diffusion up and down this stack.

    National AI leadership requires not only success by a few companies, but by many. Today’s panel, involving leading firms such as OpenAI, AMD, CoreWeave, and Microsoft, reflects important slices of the new AI economy. The AI economy requires a multifaceted and integrated ecosystem that includes “Big Tech” and “Little Tech,” startups and more established firms, open source and proprietary developers, suppliers and customers, firms that create data and firms that consume it, all working together. Governments as both regulators and leading AI adopters have critical roles to play.

    Commentators sometimes focus on the tensions between different participants in this tech ecosystem. These deserve attention. What’s often overlooked is that the different participants also depend on each other. And this means that the different contributors to the AI ecosystem all need to be healthy.

    A large technology company like Microsoft has a unique opportunity – and responsibility – to partner with and support the participants at every level of the tech stack. We strive to advance not just innovation but an economic architecture, business models, and responsible practices that will help grow the AI market on a long-term basis. Not just for the United States, but the country’s friends and allies.

    Winning the Innovation Race

    Although the AI economy is being built mostly by the private sector, government policies and initiatives need to play a critical role. This starts with work needed to help fuel innovation. A few areas deserve particular attention in this hearing.

    Power the growth of datacenters

    Just as you can’t have reliable electricity in your home without a powerplant, you can’t have AI without datacenters and AI infrastructure. And these datacenters require a vast supply chain to construct and large amounts of electricity to operate.

    America’s advanced economy relies on 50-year-old infrastructure that cannot meet the increasing electricity demands driven by AI, reshoring of manufacturing, and increased electrification. The United States will need to invest in more transmission and energy resources, onshore our supply chains, and modernize our electric grid to support forecasted increases in electrical loads. Microsoft is investing in these areas itself.

    We urge the federal government to streamline the federal permitting process to accelerate growth in all these areas. The current federal permitting processes often involve multiple agencies and complex, unpredictable, multi-year reviews. This hinders progress. The federal government should take immediate steps to establish reliable, reasonable, and transparent timelines for permitting decisions. This can also be done by standardizing federal permitting processes and designating a lead agency to shepherd the permits through the process. Further, the permitting agencies should utilize AI and digital tools to improve timelines and transparency for applicants and ensure the permitting agencies have quick access to information to assist them in their review and decision-making process.

    We were pleased to see President Trump’s recent Executive Order, “Updating Permitting Technology for the 21st Century,” directing agencies to make maximum use of technology in the environmental review and permitting process. The Congress should also look to the Federal-State Modern Grid Deployment Initiative as a proven program that can be leveraged to deliver results.

    This is just the start of what is needed to modernize and expand America’s energy grid. We need to recognize that new investments in the grid are just as important today as they were a century ago, when the United States led the world in private and public sector support for electricity.

    Grow the AI Infrastructure workforce

    Perhaps the single biggest challenge for data center expansion in the United States is a national shortage of people – including skilled electricians and pipefitters. Electricians, for example, are essential to datacenter construction, installing a complex system of electrical panels, transformers and backup power systems. We have hired thousands of electricians across the country, including in Arizona, Georgia, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. But the United States doesn’t have enough electricians to fill the growing demand. We estimate that over the next decade, the United States will need to recruit and train half a million new electricians to meet the country’s growing electricity needs. We need a national strategy to ensure we meet this opportunity for American workers.

    These are good jobs that will provide great long-term careers for people across the country. We recommend making existing federal education and training funds, as well as tax incentives, available to scale up these opportunities. These could include targeting current federal apprenticeship investments in regions that have identified major AI infrastructure initiatives and supporting existing training centers to quickly increase the number of registered apprenticeships focused on electricians.

    We commend President Trump’s recent Executive Order, “Preparing Americans for High-Paying Skilled Trade Jobs of the Future,” for highlighting the importance of skilled trades in the building of AI infrastructure and for paving the way to meet this moment. As federal agencies work to implement the order, it will be critical that industry forecasters and union training centers work together to maximize impact.

    Ultimately, we need new steps at every level of government and in communities across the country. For example, we need to do more as a nation to revitalize the industrial arts and shop classes in American high schools. This should be a priority for local school boards and state governments. Similarly, the nation’s community colleges will need to do more to support a national initiative to help train a new generation of skilled labor, including electricians and pipefitters.

    Invest in AI research and development

    To uphold America’s position as a global scientific leader, it is imperative to enhance federal investment in fundamental scientific research. The United States boasts a storied history of employing public-private partnerships. The decisions made decades ago to publicly fund research infrastructure and provide financial support to talented scientists and entrepreneurs paved a pathway to American technological leadership. Through federal, state and local government initiatives, investments were made in regional economies and programs, betting on the ingenuity of the American people. Notable incubators of the 20th  century – such as Bell Labs and the network of federal national laboratories – were the result of deliberate efforts to unite industry, government, and academia to propel scientific advancement. We must deploy a similar strategy today for AI and quantum technologies. Investments in these areas are critical to advancing the development of innovative technological solutions that address complex global challenges.

    To outcompete nations like China, which have significantly boosted their research and development (R&D) investments, the United States must accelerate strategic investments in scientific research for future technologies. Experts predict China will continue to invest substantial resources in next-generation technologies such as AI, advanced manufacturing, clean energy, quantum computing, and semiconductors over the next decade.

    Since the Second World War, America’s technological innovation has been driven by R&D based on two critical ingredients that the rest of the world has both studied and envied. The first is sustained support for basic research. While a few tech companies invest substantial sums in basic research, as we do through Microsoft Research (MSR), most world-leading basic research is pursued by academics at American universities, often based on funding from the National Science Foundation and other federal agencies. Driven by curiosity rather than a profit motive, this research often leads to unexpected but profound discoveries that are published publicly.

    The second ingredient is a sustained commitment to investments in product development by companies of all sizes. The United States, more than any other country, has mastered the process of moving new ideas quickly from universities to the private sector. This success rests on healthy investments in both R and D, recognizing that basic research is often publicly funded and typically in universities, while product development is robustly and privately funded through companies. It’s the combination of the two that makes American R&D so successful.

    In 2019, President Trump approved an executive order designed to strengthen America’s lead in artificial intelligence. It rightly focused on federal investments in AI research and making federal data and computing resources more accessible. Six years later, the President and Congress should expand on these efforts to support advancing America’s AI leadership. More funding for basic research at the National Science Foundation and through our universities is one good place to start.

    Ensure public data is open and accessible

    Data is the fuel that powers artificial intelligence. The quality, quantity, and accessibility of data directly determines the strength and sophistication of AI models. While the internet has been a major source of training data, the federal government remains one of the largest untapped sources of high-quality and high-volume data. Yet today, many of these datasets are either inaccessible or not usable for AI development.

    By making government data readily available for AI training, the United States can significantly accelerate the advancement of AI capabilities, driving innovation and discovery. Opening access to these datasets would allow for the analysis of themes, patterns, and insights across broad datasets, propelling the country to the forefront of global AI development.

    Importantly, accessible public data levels the playing field. It empowers not only large companies but startups, academic institutions, and nonprofits to train and refine AI models. This fosters a more competitive and inclusive AI ecosystem, where innovation is driven by ideas and ingenuity – not just proprietary data.

    In comparison, countries like China and the United Kingdom are already investing heavily in their data resources, recognizing the economic and strategic value of national-scale data management. China’s comprehensive system to manage datasets as a strategic resource and the UK’s National Data Library underscore a growing global trend of treating data as a common good for economic competitiveness.

    Winning the AI Diffusion Race

    History teaches us that the true impact of a general-purpose technology is not measured solely by the caliber of its leading inventions, but by how quickly, widely, and effectively these are adopted across society. But the reality is that technology diffusion takes time, investment, partnerships, and sound public policy.

    The history of electricity offers an important insight for AI. Once Thomas Edison proved in 1878 that electricity could power a lightbulb, why would anyone choose to sit at night in a room illuminated by a candle or kerosene? Yet tonight, almost 150 years later, more than 700 million people on the planet still live without electricity in their homes. Diffusion requires not only great technology, but sound economics.

    The economics of tech diffusion start with skilling. Countries need to invest in the skills needed to use new technology, both as individuals and across organizations. It is easy to underestimate both the role that skilling plays and the need for public policy to support it. But in each industrial revolution, the country that best harnessed the leading general-purpose technology of its time was the nation that skilled its population the most quickly and broadly.

    Skill the American workforce

    In the new AI economy, Americans of all backgrounds will need critical AI skills to compete. To meet the totality of the skilling challenge, the country must pursue a new national goal to make AI skilling accessible and useful for every American. This will require a very broad range of partnerships and new policy ideas, spanning across geographic, organizational, economic, and political divides.

    President Trump’s recent executive orders focused on AI education and the workforce provide critical steps towards a national skilling strategy for AI. The “Advancing Artificial Intelligence Education for American Youth” EO establishes a clear policy to promote AI literacy by responsibly integrating AI into education for teachers and students. By fostering this early exposure, the nation’s youth will be better positioned for AI-enabled work. Congress can also consider leveraging existing federal funding to the nation’s school districts to encourage AI learning and literacy in K-12 education.

    Businesses and non-profits have important roles to play. At Microsoft, we are seeking to do our part to meet this skilling challenge. In 2025 alone, we are on a path to train 2.5 million Americans in basic AI skills. We’re partnering with the National Future Farmers of America (FFA) to train educators in every state to integrate AI into the agricultural classroom through our Farm Beats for Students program. We are partnering with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), the largest organization representing the nation’s educators in America, to deliver a co-developed training program to 10,000 AFT members. And we’re partnering with the State of New Jersey, Princeton University, and CoreWeave on an AI Hub in New Jersey that will include support for AI education in local community colleges.

    When it comes to AI skilling, the most important thing we need to do is recognize that this is a critical field that is ripe for attention, learning, partnership, and innovation. It will have a huge impact on broadening access to this technology across our economy and society. Generative AI is a new and young technology. So is our knowledge of the full extent of need in terms of AI skilling programs and support. This is a first-class priority that deserves as much attention and support as innovation in AI technology itself.

    Encourage AI adoption

    The federal government also will play a critical role in AI diffusion by using AI itself. There are opportunities across the government to use AI to improve the quality and efficiency of public services for citizens.

    It’s encouraging to see the recent OMB publication of M-Memos focused on federal government use and procurement of AI. Both memos emphasized the importance of removing barriers to innovation, maximizing the use of domestically developed AI products, and encouraging AI leaders within the federal government to facilitate responsible AI adoption.

    We’re seeing activity in the states as well. We partnered with the Texas Department of Transportation to launch a six-week pilot program aimed at boosting productivity and improving decision-making across various departments. The program saw strong results with 97 percent of participants using the AI digital assistant during the pilot, 68 percent have integrated it into their daily workflow, and participants reporting saving an average of 12 hours a week on routine tasks.

    Exporting American AI

    The ability to export our AI is essential to sustaining our global competitiveness and ensuring that our technological progress benefits not only our nation, but also our allies and partners around the world. Building on recent AI diplomacy efforts, the United States offers a compelling and trusted value proposition in the global technology landscape.

    American tech companies, including Microsoft, are making unprecedented investments in AI infrastructure around the world. Microsoft alone is building AI infrastructure in more than forty countries, including regions where China has focused its investments. We urgently need a national policy that provides the right balance of export controls and trade support for these investments.

    While the U.S. government rightly has focused on protecting sensitive AI components in secure datacenters through export controls, an even more important element of AI competition will involve a race between the United States and China to spread their respective technologies to other countries. Given the nature of technology markets and their potential network effects, this race between the United States and China for international influence likely will be won by the fastest first mover. The United States needs a smart international strategy to rapidly support American AI around the world.

    This fundamental lesson emerges from the past twenty years of telecommunications equipment exports. Initially, American and European companies such as Lucent, Alcatel, Ericsson, and Nokia built innovative products that defined international standards. But as Huawei invested in innovation and China’s government subsidized sales of its products, especially across the developing world, adoption of these Chinese products outpaced the competition and became the backbone of numerous countries’ telecommunications networks. This created the technology foundation for what later became an important issue for the Trump Administration in 2020, as it grappled with the presence of Huawei’s 5G products and their implications for national and cybersecurity.

    Early signs suggest the Government of China is interested in replicating its successful telecommunications strategy. China is starting to offer developing countries subsidized access to scarce chips, and it’s promising to build local AI datacenters. The Chinese wisely recognize that if a country standardizes on China’s AI platform, it likely will continue to rely on that platform in the future.

    International partnerships will be critical. This is why Microsoft has partnered with entities like the UAE’s G42 and investment funds like Blackrock and MGX, aiming to raise up to $100 billion for AI infrastructure and supply chains. American tech companies and private capital markets are forging stronger ties with key nations and sovereign investors in the Middle East, surpassing previous efforts to counter Chinese subsidies in telecommunications and reflecting our commitment to innovation and cooperation. While China’s government may subsidize its technology adoption in developing regions, it will struggle to match the scale and impact of America’s private sector investments.

    Pragmatic American export control policies are essential, balancing security protections with the ability to expand rapidly. Protecting national security by preventing adversaries from acquiring advanced AI technology is crucial. Rules should include qualitative standards for secure datacenter deployments to prevent chip diversion to China and ensure advanced AI services are safeguarded. We support this type of approach.

    However, we have expressed our concerns about the quantitative caps imposed on GPU shipments by the interim final AI Diffusion Rule issued in January. These place key American allies and partners in a Tier Two category, imposing limits on AI datacenter expansion. This includes countries like Switzerland, Poland, Greece, Singapore, India, Indonesia, Israel, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia. Customers in these countries now fear restricted access to American AI technology – potentially benefitting China’s AI sector by turning to alternatives.

    The Trump administration has an opportunity to revise the rule, eliminating quantitative caps and retaining qualitative standards. This approach ensures American allies and partners remain confident in accessing American AI products.

    Ultimately, we need to recognize that countries around the world will use American AI only if they can trust it. This creates responsibilities for American companies to develop and deploy AI infrastructure and products in a responsible manner that meets local needs. And it requires that countries have confidence in sustained and uninterrupted access to critical AI components and services. The United States has long built a reputation for trustworthy technology that China has been unable to match. But this reputation, like everything that truly matters, requires constant attention and care.

    Tags: AI, AI economy, artificial intelligence, Brad Smith, Congress, Innovation, Innovation Featured, Technology

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI Global: A new pope is chosen: A look back on the jostling for the papacy and the conclave’s history

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Colin Rose, Associate Professor of European and Digital History, Brock University

    Cardinal Robert Prevost of the United States is the new pope, succeeding Pope Francis, and taking the name Pope Leo XIV. He’s been elected following a millennium-old ceremony known as the papal conclave. During the conclave, the 135 eligible Cardinal Electors of the Catholic Church sequestered themselves and elected the new pope in isolation.

    During that time, they had no contact with the outside world and they voted repeatedly, in written ballots and verbal declaration, until one of them achieved a two-thirds majority.

    Every failure brings sighs from the crowds in St. Peter’s Square as the votes, burned with a chemical admixture, send up a plume of inky black smoke from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel. White smoke, signalling a new pope has been elected, provokes cheers and celebrations and the beginning of a new papal era, as was the case after the election of Leo on May 8, 2025.



    Read more:
    How the next pope will be elected – what goes on at the conclave

    The history of the conclave, especially during the Italian Renaissance that I teach and research, tells us a lot about how the papacy is both a religious and a political office.

    The pope is at once the supreme pontiff of the Catholic Church as well as the absolute monarch of Vatican City. He is both bishop of Rome and head of state of the smallest sovereign state in the world.

    Politics of the papacy

    In the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, the Vatican was the capital of a much-larger Papal State. This territorial buffer around Rome at its height bordered the territories of Florence, Naples, Milan and Venice, and covered much of northern Italy.

    Popes wielded great influence in the dramatic politics of famous Italian families like the Medici: it was a Medici pope, Clement VII, who helped negotiate the installation of the first Medici duke in Florence.

    Apocryphal accounts persist of Julius II, the so-called “Warrior Pope,” leading a charge over the walls of Bologna in 1506.

    At the same time popes, and Catholic policy, had profound consequences for European and global politics: Clement’s successor Paul III excommunicated England’s King Henry VIII, cementing the English break with Rome in 1538.

    A portrait of Pope Alexander VI Borgia circa 1495.
    (Vatican Museums)

    Alexander VI was more audaciously imperial: he sponsored the treaty that arbitrarily divided the entire world outside of Europe between Spain (his home country) and Portugal in 1494.

    Alexander VI’s historical infamy is perhaps outdone only by his son, Cesare Borgia, made famous by his mention is Niccolo Machiavelli’s book The Prince.

    Becoming pope was a big deal for a cardinal and his family. Leading candidates known as papabili (pope-ables) began strategizing and negotiating even before popes died.

    When a pontiff died, those cardinals abroad began their travels to Rome, construction began on the temporary cells that would house them all during the sequestration and the real work of electing a pope began.

    Enea Silvio Piccolomini left a detailed memoir of his election as Pius II in 1458. In it he describes a process of negotiating, threatening, cajoling and strategizing that make the scheming in the recent movie Conclave look unsophisticated.

    Renaissance Italy wrestled with and ultimately reconciled itself to the political nature of the papacy.

    Many, including popes such as Pius II, expressed discomfort with the political power of the papacy. While it was a clear factor in the schism of European Christendom that led to the emergence of the Protestant churches in the 16th century, in early modern Italy the political power of the papacy was a reality of the diplomatic milieu.

    The empty throne

    The conclave marks a special place in early modern history as a time when ordinary political order was overturned for a brief period known as the sede vacante (the Vacant See).

    The Vacant See was a time when identities were swappable and when, as one Paolo di Grassi told a judge in 1559, “in Vacant See [Romans] are the masters. The People are the Masters.” Di Grassi had, during the Vacant See of November 1559, pursued his own longstanding grudges against his enemies and been involved in at least one armed brawl.

    While they waited for a new pope, Romans and everyone else might have passed the time with another favourite vice: gambling on the conclave’s outcome.



    Read more:
    Who will the next pope be? Here are some top contenders

    European princes and other potentates of the church paid close attention to conclaves, tried to smuggle information in and out and steer the conclave in favour of their preferred candidate.

    In 1730, for instance, Cardinal Lambertini smuggled a letter out of his conclave thanking a benefactor for their donations to his future ordination as Pope Benedict XIV.

    The election held everyone’s attention as a rare and unusually impactful event in the Roman calendar.

    While Rome’s streets thrummed with tension during the chaotic days of a Vacant See, the conclave proceeded serenely and secretly within the Vatican’s walls.

    The use of white smoke to mark the election of a pope only began in the 20th century. During the Renaissance, the sound of bells would be a more effective way to spread the news through Rome, before the new pope was announced to the city and the world.

    Much turns on that announcement now, as much did in previous centuries. The conclave elects both a pope and a head of state. While Vatican City is magnitudes smaller than the Papal State of the past, it remains a sovereign state.

    Papal pronouncements shape not just religious thought but political action, through voting, advocacy and more. The crowds who awaited the announcement of the new pope might be less raucous than Renaissance Romans, but they were nonetheless invested in the results.

    Colin Rose receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

    – ref. A new pope is chosen: A look back on the jostling for the papacy and the conclave’s history – https://theconversation.com/a-new-pope-is-chosen-a-look-back-on-the-jostling-for-the-papacy-and-the-conclaves-history-255492

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Donald Trump has reduced tariffs on British metals and cars, but how important is this trade deal? Experts react

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Maha Rafi Atal, Adam Smith Senior Lecturer in Political Economy, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Glasgow

    The US president called it a “very big deal”. The UK prime minister said it was “fantastic, historic” day. For sure, Keir Starmer and his team will have been delighted that the UK was first in line to negotiate adjustments to Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs announced on “liberation day” just a few weeks ago. But what might the trade deal between the UK and US actually mean? We asked four economic experts to respond to the Oval Office announcement.

    Wins for the UK are real, but limited

    Maha Rafi Atal, Adam Smith Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Political Economy, University of Glasgow

    The new UK-US trade announcement is less a breakthrough than a careful balancing act – partial, tactical and politically calculated.

    Key UK wins are real but limited. Tariffs on British metals and autos are eased, thanks in part to the UK government acquisition of the Chinese-owned Scunthorpe steelmaking facility, removing a longstanding US objection. But even auto tariffs are only scaled back to the general baseline of 10% and not eliminated.

    Agriculture and tech remain the real stress points. The UK has granted market access to US agricultural products, including beef, but crucially without changing its food safety standards. This sidesteps a domestic political fight and avoids undermining the UK’s Northern Ireland arrangements or its EU alignment. Still, if US beef doesn’t meet those standards, the market access may prove meaningless in practice – setting up future pressure points.

    Perhaps the most notable UK win: it retains its digital services tax on US tech giants. That tax hits Silicon Valley hard, and the US wanted it gone. Instead, the announcement punts this to future talks – holding the line for now, but not securing it permanently.

    This isn’t the long-anticipated UK-US free trade agreement. It’s not a treaty, not comprehensive, and not ratified. It’s a limited, executive-level arrangement with more questions than answers – and more negotiations to come.

    Stronger ties and badly needed growth to come

    David Collins, Professor of International Economic Law, City St George’s, University of London

    This deal is an excellent development that should help restore the UK-US trade relationship to what it was before President Trump took office for the second time. At the time of writing, few details about the arrangement are known. But the 25% tariff on UK steel and aluminium has been removed, as has the tariff rate on most car exports – from 27.5% to 10%

    The lower car rate applies to the first 100,000 vehicles exported from the UK to the US each year. Around 101,000 were exported last year.

    More details are promised in the coming days and weeks. Perhaps they will include an agreement which separates the UK from any restrictions that the US intends to impose on the film industry. In return, the UK might eliminate its digital services tax on the US (which I argue it should never have imposed because it will only raise prices for consumers and generate little revenue).

    But overall, it seems clear that the Labour government has prioritised the UK’s relationship with the EU, evidently seeking as close as possible a connection without formally rejoining. So, while this agreement with Trump is well short of a comprehensive free trade agreement, it is a welcome development that should strengthen Anglo-American ties and bring some badly needed economic growth to both countries.

    Political theatre for both sides

    Conor O’Kane, Senior Lecturer in Economics, University of Bournemouth

    This announcement is a framework for a trade deal rather than an actual formal completed agreement. Trade deals are detailed, complex and take many months to negotiate.

    The US and the UK are both countries with massive persistent structural trade deficits. It is very unlikely that what has been announced will significantly shift the dial on either country’s structural deficit or growth forecast.

    Jerome Powell, chair of the US Federal Reserve, recently warned that Donald Trump’s tariff policy risked higher inflation and higher unemployment at the same time, what economists call “stagflation”. The president’s announcement will prove a welcome distraction from Powell’s comments.

    The deal should perhaps be viewed as symbolic. Trump’s US tariff policy has been chaotic to date and his administration finally has something they can point to as a win in the aftermath of “liberation day”.

    Of course, a trade deal is also a good news story for the Labour government after disappointing local elections. Prime Minister Keir Starmer can claim economic credibility by being first in line for a trade deal, perhaps cementing the “special relationship”.

    Mini-tariffs on UK cars.
    balipadma/Shutterstock

    However, is the US a reliable partner to sign a trade deal with? During his first term, Trump signed a free trade deal with Mexico and Canada (the 2020 United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA – the successor to Nafta). At the time, he said the deal “will be fantastic for all”. But he subsequently reneged on it.

    There is also a wider strategic element to this. First, the US wanted to get a trade deal in place with the UK ahead of what looks like a comprehensive EU-UK trade deal coming down the line. Second, Trump sees the EU as an economic rival. By signing a deal with the UK, he is signalling to other European countries the possibility of a potentially better trading relationship with the US outside of the EU.

    Deal leaves the door open for EU relationship

    Sangeeta Khorana, Professor of International Trade Policy, Aston University

    The agreement is a tactical win for both countries. It eases trade frictions, supports key industries and sets the framework for a broader UK-US free trade agreement without impacting on the UK’s economic reset with the European Union.

    The UK–US agreement, which suspends some of Trump’s recent tariffs, is sector-specific and far from comprehensive. It preserves UK food safety and animal-welfare standards. And it safeguards post-Brexit EU links while allowing the UK to cement its strategic partnership with Washington. Talks will be launched on aerospace, advanced batteries, data flows and services liberalisation within 12 months.

    This is a timely coup, coming so soon after the India deal. The pact represents a strategic diplomatic gain that brings tariff relief (and potentially the associated uncertainty) for key British industries, while also preserving UK’s regulatory alignment with the EU.

    Maha Rafi Atal is sometimes a volunteer organiser for the US Democratic party/candidates and has no party affiliation or involvement in the UK.

    Sangeeta Khorana is Professor and endowed Chair of International Trade Policy at Aston University.

    Conor O’Kane and David Collins do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Donald Trump has reduced tariffs on British metals and cars, but how important is this trade deal? Experts react – https://theconversation.com/donald-trump-has-reduced-tariffs-on-british-metals-and-cars-but-how-important-is-this-trade-deal-experts-react-256240

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: N West takes service delivery programmes to Kgetlengrivier Local Municipality

    Source: South Africa News Agency

    The North West Provincial Government’s Accelerated Service Delivery Programme, known as Thuntsha Lerole Reloaded, was launched this week in the Kgetlengrivier Local Municipality. 

    This initiative focuses on areas such as Swartruggens, Derby, Redirile, and the Senthumole section in Koster.

    The weeklong service delivery programme will conclude with the provision of on-site social services at the Reagile Community Hall in Koster on Friday, 9 May 2025. 

    READ | North West leaders on drive to expedite services 

    This event will include visits to identified infrastructure projects and a community feedback session, which will be led by Premier Lazarus Kagiso Mokgosi.

    According to the provincial government, Mokgosi will be joined by MECs, and District and Local Mayors. 

    In efforts to empower local farmers and enhance food production capacity, a shade net tunnel will be handed over to the Onalerona Community Centre. 

    Meanwhile, a veteran poultry package will be provided to beneficiaries, which includes one three-tier layer cage, layer mash feed, and 120 point-of-lay chickens. 

    A veteran goat package will also be distributed, consisting of 10 Boer goat does and one Boer goat buck.

    In addition, a 10-hectare center pivot system will be handed over to a farmer in Koornfontein.

    The Premier’s team will also embark on a site inspection visit to the new Mphe Bana II Secondary School construction project in Reagile, along with an oversight visit to the special maintenance section of Roads P4/2, including Koster Town and sections of Road P34/2. 

    “Road safety will be improved through the patching of potholes, while grass cutting will be undertaken at identified roads. High-mast and streetlight repairs will also be carried out across Reagile to enhance night-time safety. 

    “Furthermore, an intensified litter picking and waste collection programme will target illegal dumping sites with the launch of the clean cities campaign,” the statement read. 

    In response to the needs of the community, sanitary towels will be issued to learners at Mphe Bana Secondary School to support hygiene and dignity. 

    The leaders will also distribute food parcels to needy families as part of the ongoing community relief efforts. – SAnews.gov.za 

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Wyden, Crapo Introduce Legislation to Modernize Short Line and Regional Railroad Tax Credit

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore)

    May 08, 2025

    Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., said today he has reintroduced legislation with U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, to expand the Short Line Railroad Tax Credit that provides operators with essential resources to ensure communities and small businesses can rely on safe infrastructure. 

    The bipartisan Short Line Railroad Tax Credit Modernization Act would increase the tax credit available for track rehabilitation and maintenance from $3,500 per mile to $6,100 per mile. The bill would also make more tracks eligible for the credit. Under current law, eligibility is based on maps of track owned or leased by short line railroad operators as of 2015. The bill would expand eligibility to all tracks owned or leased as of 2025 and in accordance with modern maps. 

    “Short line and regional railroads are not just a mode of transportation, they are also a vital economic tool that connects local businesses with Oregonians and other people all across the nation,” said Wyden. “For years, Senator Crapo and I worked together to make railroad tax credits permanent, and the next step is to make these tax credits better for our operators.  Our bipartisan bill will provide railroads with much needed resources to make vital upgrades that will bring our rural, suburban and urban communities and their local economies together.”

    “Short line railroads are critical infrastructure that connect Idaho’s farmers, ranchers and manufacturers to national and global markets, supporting local jobs and driving economic growth in rural Idaho,” said Crapo. “Modernizing the Short Line Railroad Tax Credit will provide railroads with necessary certainty and resources to invest in safety, efficiency and long-term infrastructure improvements in our regional areas.” 

    Text of the bill is here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Warner & Kaine Introduce Bills to Protect Wilderness in Rockingham, Augusta, Highland, and Bath Counties

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Commonwealth of Virginia Mark R Warner
    WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) introduced two bills to protect wilderness in Rockingham, Augusta, Highland, and Bath counties.
    “We are lucky to have such beautiful natural resources in Virginia, and we need to do more to ensure that these lands are protected for future generations,” said the senators. “We’re proud to introduce this legislation to preserve wilderness in Rockingham, Augusta, Highland, and Bath counties, protect wildlife, and support local economies that depend on tourism and outdoor recreation.”
    These additions were recommended by the U.S. Forest Service in 2014 and endorsed by members of the George Washington National Forest Stakeholder Collaborative, a group of forest users that started work together over a decade ago to agree on acceptable locations in the George Washington National Forest for wilderness, timber harvest, trails, and other uses. 
    In 2023, the tourism economy directly employed 7,562 people and generated $842.5 million in expenditures in Augusta, Rockingham, Bath, and Highland counties, as well as Harrisonburg, Staunton, and Waynesboro.
    Shenandoah Mountain Act
    The Shenandoah Mountain Act would establish a 92,562-acre Shenandoah Mountain National Scenic Area (SMNSA) in Rockingham, Augusta, and Highland counties. National Scenic Areas protect the scenic, historic, recreational, and natural resources in specific areas and allow compatible uses such as outdoor recreation activities.
    The SMNSA encompasses four wilderness areas—Skidmore Fork, Little River, Ramsey’s Draft, and Lynn Hollow—and establishes a wilderness area at Beech Lick Knob. It also includes headwaters for the Potomac and James Rivers and watersheds that provide municipal drinking water sources for Harrisonburg, Staunton, and other communities. The NSA designation would protect these rivers and streams from industrial development and safeguard populations of at-risk species, such as the Cow Knob and Shenandoah Mountain Salamander.
    James Madison University scientists estimate that lands within the SMNSA proposal already generate $13.7 million per year in other local benefits, including the value of the water supply and energy savings, and that the designation of the SMNSA would further grow this value.
    “Friends of Shenandoah Mountain is so pleased with the reintroduction of the Shenandoah Mountain Act. For decades, we’ve worked with folks who hunt, hike, paddle, fish, and ride mountain bikes in this landscape, and everyone agrees that a National Scenic Area designation strikes the right balance between recreation and preservation,” said Lynn Cameron, Co-Chair of Friends of Shenandoah Mountain.
    Full text of the Shenandoah Mountain Act is available here.
    Virginia Wilderness Additions Act
    The Virginia Wilderness Additions Act would add 5,600 acres to the existing Rough Mountain and Rich Hole wilderness areas within the George Washington National Forest in Bath County.
    “Expanding the Rough Mountain and Rich Hole Wilderness Areas honors decades of work by dozens of stakeholders, and results in a number of ecological, economic, and recreational benefits. The Virginia Wilderness Committee is grateful to Senators Kaine and Warner for this reintroduction,” said Ellen Stuart-Haentjens, Executive Director of the Virginia Wilderness Committee.
    Full text of the Virginia Wilderness Additions Act is available here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: PM remarks on the UK’s landmark economic deal with the US: Thursday 8 May

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Speech

    PM remarks on the UK’s landmark economic deal with the US: Thursday 8 May

    Prime Minister’s remarks that he delivered at Jaguar Land Rover today (Thursday 8 May) on the UK agreeing a landmark economic deal with the United States.

    Just a few moments ago, I spoke to President Trump, the President of the United States.

    And I am really pleased to announce to you, and I wanted to come to you to announce it, that we have agreed the basis of an historic Economic Prosperity Deal.

    That is a deal will protect British businesses and save thousands of jobs in Britain, really important, skilled, well-paid jobs.

    It will remove tariffs on British steel and aluminium, reducing them to zero.

    It will provide vital assurances for our life sciences sector, so important to our economy and grant unprecedented market access for British farmers without compromising our high standards.

    And for the great British cars that you make here, that we see all around us, this deal means that US tariffs will now be cut from 27.5% to 10% for 100,000 vehicles every year, that’s a huge and important reduction.

    And I know from when I was last here, how much that will have been weighing on your minds when you knew the size of the tariffs that would otherwise be in place. 

    To get that decrease was hugely important to me and I can tell you my teams were working really hard on this deal night and day for weeks. I was working with them.

    And in politics what matters sometimes is who you have in your mind’s eye when you are making these deals, who do you have in your mind’s eye when you are taking decisions. 

    What I took away from here last time was you and the brilliant work that you do and had you in my mind’s eye as we did that. 

    We have scope to increase that quota as we go forward, this is not fixed, this is where we have got to. 

    And all of these tariff cuts will come into place as soon as possible and that’s really important in relation as well to the work that you are doing, and the brilliant cars that you make.

    And as Adrian has said I was here with you just a few weeks ago and I promised you that I would deliver in the national interest.

    And today I am really pleased to come back here, to be able to look you in the eye and say I have delivered on the promise I made to you. 

    And that’s why as soon as I knew this deal was coming in today, I said I want to come back to JLR to talk to the workforce there, for whom this means so such. 

    Now of course we are the first country to secure such a deal with the United States.

    In an era of global instability that is so important. The great challenge of our age is to secure and renew Britain. 

    And that is what we are going to do.  

    Acting in the national interest.

    Shaping this new era – not being shaped by it.

    If it’s not good for Britain, we won’t do it.

    If it doesn’t mean more money in people’s pockets, we won’t do it.

    If it doesn’t mean security and renewal in every part of the country – we won’t do it.

    But that doesn’t mean we’re turning inward. 

    Instead, we are sending a message to the world that Britain is open for business – seeking trade agreements with India on Tuesday, with the US today, and working to boost trade with other partners too – including of course the EU with who we have an important meeting just a week on Monday. 

    Making deals that will benefit working people.

    You know – in recent years an idea has taken hold that you show strength by rejecting your allies. 

    That you shut the door, put the phone down, storm off. I’ve had plenty of people urging me to do that rather than stay in the room and fight for the interests of our country. 

    I want to be absolutely crystal clear – that is not how this Government operates. It is never how this Government operates. We don’t storm off, we stay in the room, and we negotiate, and we work for our country with the national interest at the foremost of our mind. 

    Because the other way of working doesn’t deliver the benefits that working people need.

    And so I also want to be clear – this is just the start.

    With the deal we have done today we can say: jobs saved. Jobs won. But not job done. 

    Because we are more ambitious for what the UK and US can do together.

    So we are hammering out further details to reduce barriers to trade with the United States across the board.

    We have £1.5 trillion invested in each other’s economies, creating 2.5 million jobs across both countries.

    There are so many areas where I think we can even more than that and put more pounds in the pockets of working people across the United Kingdom.

    As the two biggest services exporters in the world, we will work to bring down barriers, creating jobs in our thriving services sectors – in Leeds, in Manchester, London and Birmingham.

    As the only two western nations with trillion-dollar tech sectors we will go further to deepen our partnership in new technologies to shape the innovations of this century together and create the jobs of the future. 

    Because, look – our history shows what we can achieve when we work together.

    And what timing for this deal, that we have agreed this deal on VE Day.  

    80 years ago, today Churchill was addressing the nation at the end of the Second World War. Victory in Europe. 

    And we were standing the United Kingdom with the United States on defence and security. For 80 years we have been the closest of partners, and today we have added to that trade and the economy in the special relationship between us. 

    Defined by peace and economic prosperity. 

    So, it is fitting today that we renew the bond on the 80th anniversary of VE Day.

    Updates to this page

    Published 8 May 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Crop Report for the Period of April 29 to May 5, 2025

    Source: Government of Canada regional news

    Released on May 8, 2025

    Spring seeding is well underway across Saskatchewan, with 18 per cent of the 2025 crop now planted.

    The current provincial seeding progress of 18 per cent is ahead of the five-year average (2020-2024) of 10 per cent and the 10-year average (2015-2024) of 12 per cent. Despite multiple storms throughout the province in April, producers were able to get into their fields and make rapid progress over the last couple of weeks.

    The southwest region is the furthest advanced with 43 per cent seeded so far and the first seeded crops starting to emerge. The northwest and southeast regions are also making good progress with 15 per cent and 14 per cent of seeding complete, respectively. The west-central region is reporting 11 per cent seeding completion, and the east-central and northeast regions are both reporting nine per cent of seeding complete. 

    Pulse crops are leading in seeding completion, with lentils at 34 per cent seeded, field peas at 31 per cent and chickpeas at 28 per cent. Durum is at 33 per cent seeded, triticale at 31 per cent, barley at 19 per cent, and spring wheat at 13 per cent. Oats and canary seed both reported at four per cent seeding complete. Mustard leads amongst oilseed crops for seeding completion at 21 per cent, followed by canola at 10 per cent and flax at six per cent. Perennial forage is reported at five per cent seeded, and there are no reports of soybean seeding completion currently. 

    Limited moisture fell throughout much of the province over the last week which allowed field operations to progress rapidly through many regions. The highest reported rainfall was in the Alida area at 16 millimetres (mm) followed by the Lafleche area at 12 mm.

    Although provincial topsoil moisture conditions are mainly at adequate levels, there are some areas in the province experiencing drier conditions. Topsoil moisture for cropland is currently rated at three per cent surplus, 78 per cent adequate, 16 per cent short and three per cent very short. Hayland is rated at one per cent surplus, 71 per cent adequate, 22 per cent short and six per cent very short. Pasture topsoil moisture conditions are reported at one per cent surplus, 68 per cent adequate, 23 per cent short and eight per cent very short. 

    Livestock producers are hopeful for moisture in the coming weeks to help support water supplies and pasture conditions throughout the season. Spring runoff was reported in late April, with provincial data indicating 30 per cent below normal, 55 per cent normal and 15 per cent above normal. Seventy-six per cent of crop reporters indicated that the amount of runoff received would be sufficient to replenish dugouts and other water bodies within their area. Notably within the southwest region, 52 per cent of respondents indicated that the amount of runoff may not be sufficient to replenish dugouts within their area. 

    Additionally, pasture conditions were also reported in late April, with provincial data indicating six per cent of pastures to be in excellent condition, 42 per cent reported to be in good condition, 36 per cent reported as in fair condition, 13 per cent reported as poor, and three per cent very poor. 

    With the warm, dry weather, producers are busy in their fields with seeding, pre-seed spraying for weed control, harrowing and rock picking. Livestock producers are busy with calving with some producers finishing up for the season. As cattle are being moved out to pasture, producers are also checking and fixing fences. As spring progresses, producers are reminded to be safe during their field activities and watch for overhead powerlines while moving equipment in fields and farmyards this spring. 

    A complete, printable version of the Crop Report is available online – Download Crop Report.

    Follow the 2025 Crop Report on Twitter at @SKAgriculture.

    -30-

    For more information, contact:

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Landmark Economic Deal with US saves thousands of jobs

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    Landmark Economic Deal with US saves thousands of jobs

    Today the UK and US has agreed a landmark economic deal which will save thousands of jobs for British carmakers and steel industry

    • Britain secures the first US trade deal protecting British business and British jobs, the second landmark deal in Britain’s national interest in a matter of days following the India deal
    • Prime Minister delivers on his promise to save UK steel and British car makers – saving thousands of jobs across the country
    • US tariffs on automotives immediately slashed from 27.5%, with steel and aluminium reduced to zero
    • Unprecedented market access for British farmers with protections on food standards maintained 

    Thousands of jobs have been saved as the Prime Minister secured a first-of-a-kind trade agreement with the US.

    It is the second major trade announcement this week – following the India Free Trade Agreement on Tuesday, this historic agreement with the US to slash tariffs delivers for UK carmakers, steelworks and farmers – protecting jobs and providing stability for exporters. 

    Car export tariffs will reduce from 27.5% to 10% – saving hundreds of millions a year for Jaguar Land Rover alone. This will apply to a quota of 100,000 UK cars, almost the total the UK exported last year. 

    The Prime Minister visited Jaguar Land Rover last month announcing greater freedom for car manufacturers to back British industry in the face of global headwinds. During this visit he told workers he would accelerate trade deals to protect their jobs, their livelihoods, and to champion British business worldwide. 

    The UK steel industry – which was on the brink of collapse just weeks ago – will no longer face tariffs thanks to today’s deal. The Prime Minister negotiated the 25% tariff down to zero, meaning UK steelmakers can carry on exporting to the US. This follows last month’s intervention from the Prime Minister to take control of British Steel to save thousands of jobs in Scunthorpe.

    In a win for both nations, we have agreed new reciprocal market access on beef – with UK farmers given a tariff free quota for 13,000 metric tonnes. There will be no weakening of UK food standards on imports. 

    We will also remove the tariff on ethanol – which is used to produce beer – coming into the UK from the US, down to zero. 

    It is one of many international deals that the Government is landing to boost our economy – following an Indian trade deal which will add £4.8 billion to the UK economy and £2.2 billion in wages every year.

    Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, said:

    “The new global era demands a government that steps up, not stands aside. 

    “This historic deal delivers for British business and British workers protecting thousands of British jobs in key sectors including car manufacturing and steel. 

    “My government has put Britain at the front of the queue because we want to work constructively with allies for mutual benefit rather than turning our back on the world.

    “As VE Day reminds us, the UK has no greater ally than the United States, so I am delighted that eight decades on, under President Trump the special relationship remains a force for economic and national security. 

    “This is jobs saved, jobs won but not job done and our teams will continue to work to build on this agreement. 

    “My Government is determined to go further and faster to strengthen the UK’s economy, putting more money in working people’s pockets as part of our Plan for Change.”

    Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said:

    “I am delighted our calm approach and proactive engagement with the US has resulted in this deal which cuts tariffs for UK industry and cuts costs for businesses.

    “Businesses across the country will be glad to see our approach working, but this is only the beginning. We look forward to strengthening our trading relationship with the US through a wider economic deal, which will help us to deliver on our Plan for Change to provide economic stability and make this country fit for the future.”

    Adrian Mardell, Chief Executive Officer, JLR said:  

    “The car industry is vital to the UK’s economic prosperity, sustaining 250,000 jobs. We warmly welcome this deal which secures greater certainty for our sector and the communities it supports. We would like to thank the UK and US Governments for agreeing this deal at pace and look forward to continued engagement over the coming months.”

    Work will continue on the remaining sectors – such as pharmaceuticals and remaining reciprocal tariffs. But – in an important move – the US has agreed that the UK will get preferential treatment in any further tariffs imposed as part of Section 232 investigations. The deal opens the way to a future UK US technology partnership through which our science-rich nations will collaborate in key areas of advanced technology, for example biotech, life sciences, quantum computing, nuclear fusion, aerospace and space. 

    The Digital Services Tax remains unchanged as part of today’s deal. Instead the two nations have agreed to work on a digital trade deal that will strip back paperwork for British firms trying to export to the US – opening the UK up to a huge market that will put rocket boosters on the UK economy.

    Updates to this page

    Published 8 May 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Global: David Attenborough’s Ocean reveals how bottom trawling is hurting sealife in horrifying detail

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Callum Roberts, Professor of Marine Conservation, University of Exeter

    A bottom trawl net hanging to dry in the harbour of Harlingen in the Netherlands, showing the rockhopper rollers on the footrope that contacts the seabed. 365 Focus Photography/Shutterstock

    In one of the most powerful scenes of Sir David Attenborough’s new film Ocean, the audience sees industrial fishing from a fish’s perspective.

    Confronting a bottom trawl net as it thunders across the seabed, terrified fish scatter in desperate but futile attempts to escape the vast net swallowing them. The heavy chain that holds the trawl down sweeps away sponges, corals, seagrass and other seabed life, leaving behind utter devastation.

    Attenborough’s latest nature documentary is a visually magnificent and highly personal meditation on the relationship humans have with the sea. It is the most important part of our world, he says. But we have taken it for granted.

    A century of intensifying and destructive fishing has culminated in bottom trawl nets, some as big as cathedrals and weighing many tonnes, being towed along the seabed to catch fish. To allow them to fish more effectively in areas of rough seabed, which is where most marine life is found, fishers in the 1920s invented “rock-hopper” gear: rollers placed along the foot rope that touches the bottom, allowing the net to bounce over obstacles.

    This innovation followed the trajectory of many fishing methods, which was to become more destructive over time to sustain the size of catches in the face of declining fish stocks.

    Trawler nets are designed to gobble up marine life indiscriminately.
    Anney_Lier/Shutterstock

    Shellfish dredging, another fishing method that destroys as it catches, is shown in a second horrifying scene. To catch scallops, steel dredges armed with spikes (imagine the harrows farmers use to break up soil on ploughed fields) drag along the seabed, smashing and pummelling everything. In minutes, seabed life of astonishing diversity and beauty is erased.

    Together, Attenborough explains, bottom trawling and dredging wreak their havoc across an area of seabed larger than the Amazon rainforest every year.

    Attenborough invites viewers to wonder how on Earth these fishing methods are still allowed when the damage is so obvious. Viewers may be even more surprised, and very probably angry, to learn that most marine protected areas in Europe, and indeed worldwide, permit bottom trawling and dredging within their boundaries.

    To understand why this is the case, we have to go back in time.

    A medieval practice

    We know from the parliamentary records of Edward III in 1376 that fishers in southern England were practising bottom trawling as far back as the 1300s. Long-held traditions are hard to change, even when there is irrefutable evidence that they cause harm.

    It is telling, however, that this early description of trawling is a petition urging the king to ban the method for its reckless destruction of habitat and waste of fish.

    Nevertheless, these fisheries expanded because trawling was an efficient means of landing huge quantities of fish. Trawling’s success came at the expense of what we call marine animal forests, habitats built by animals like oysters, horse mussels and sponges – all swept away to leave behind vacant shifting sands, mud and gravel that predominate over vast swaths of seafloor today.

    A recent estimate has suggested that oyster reefs once covered at least 17,000 square kilometres of European seas – an area the size of Northern Ireland. All of this was gone by the beginning of the 20th century. This ecosystem cannot recover until it is offered protection from trawling and dredging. So, why haven’t we protected it?

    Degraded habitats, profoundly altered by trawling, were what scientists and then conservationists found when they first ventured below water after the invention of scuba diving in the mid-20th century. These early submarine explorers mistook them for natural and wild, failing to see the role industrial fishing had played in their creation.

    Being now occupied almost exclusively by creatures used to the passage of trawls – animals that live fast and die young like worms, prawns and whelks – these habitats were labelled as resilient, and not in need of protection.

    This warped perspective fooled us into thinking that marine protected areas left open to bottom trawling would be fine. In the few cases where protected areas exclude trawling, like around the Isle of Arran in western Scotland, the swift resurgence of seabed life has revealed how wrong this assumption was.

    In only five years, sea-moss, sea-nettles, scallops and brittle stars have reoccupied the seafloor, a transformation that is nevertheless just the beginning of a recovery that will carry on for decades.

    Seabeds protected from trawls and dredges can rebound, like this one off the Isle of Arran. It offers a glimpse of what existed before industrial fisheries.
    Henley Spiers/Blue Marine Foundation

    Giving up the trawl and dredge does not mean an end to fishing, as the film explains. In fact, recovering fish populations in protected areas replenish those in fishing grounds nearby, leading to better and more sustainable catches.

    Calling time on destructive fishing

    Perhaps now, at last, the writing is on the wall for bottom trawling and dredging, because they do a more insidious form of damage we have only recently become fully aware of. The ocean floor is one of the planet’s largest carbon stores. A snowfall of sinking organic matter and sediment accumulates on the seabed, where the carbon it contains is buried for thousands of years.

    Left undisturbed, this carbon is out of harm’s way. But when churned up by the passage of trawls and dredges, some is turned back into CO₂, some of which will end up back in the atmosphere.

    The magnitude of these seabed carbon emissions, and their role in climate change, is hotly debated. Getting more reliable estimates is the mission of a five-year project I lead, the Convex Seascape Survey. One thing is already clear from our research, however: there are places underwater – like peat bogs or permafrost on land – that we should not disturb because they harbour immense quantities of carbon.

    Ironically, these muddy basins have in the past few decades become some of the most intensively fished places in the sea because they are home to valuable prawns, which are among the few species still able to support viable fisheries.

    Any country serious about meeting net zero in time to prevent dangerous climate change must act swiftly to protect its seabed carbon stores. And any country serious about ocean conservation knows that marine protected areas are useless if they don’t exclude trawling and dredging.

    David Attenborough, Silverback Films and the Open Planet Studios team have brought these truths to a mass audience, leaving no space for further evasion and denial. What we need now is action.

    Don’t have time to read about climate change as much as you’d like?

    Get a weekly roundup in your inbox instead. Every Wednesday, The Conversation’s environment editor writes Imagine, a short email that goes a little deeper into just one climate issue. Join the 45,000+ readers who’ve subscribed so far.

    Callum Roberts receives funding from Convex, the Natural Environment Research Council and the European Research Council. He is on the board of Nekton and Maldives Coral Institute and sits on the Minderoo Natural Ecosystems advisory panel, the Bertarelli Ocean Legacy Science advisory board and the CORDAP science advisory panel.

    – ref. David Attenborough’s Ocean reveals how bottom trawling is hurting sealife in horrifying detail – https://theconversation.com/david-attenboroughs-ocean-reveals-how-bottom-trawling-is-hurting-sealife-in-horrifying-detail-255991

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Landmark economic deal with United States saves thousands of jobs for British car makers and steel industry

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    Press release

    Landmark economic deal with United States saves thousands of jobs for British car makers and steel industry

    Thousands of jobs have been saved as the Prime Minister secured a first-of-a-kind trade agreement with the US.

    • Britain secures the first US trade deal protecting British business and British jobs, the second landmark deal in Britain’s national interest in a matter of days following the India deal
    • Prime Minister delivers on his promise to save UK steel and British car makers – saving thousands of jobs across the country
    • US tariffs on automotives immediately slashed from 27.5%, with steel and aluminium reduced to zero
    • Unprecedented market access for British farmers with protections on food standards maintained

    Thousands of jobs have been saved as the Prime Minister secured a first-of-a-kind trade agreement with the US.

    It is the second major trade announcement this week – following the India Free Trade Agreement on Tuesday, this historic agreement with the US to slash tariffs delivers for UK carmakers, steelworks and farmers – protecting jobs and providing stability for exporters. 

    Car export tariffs will reduce from 27.5% to 10% – saving hundreds of millions a year for Jaguar Land Rover alone. This will apply to a quota of 100,000 UK cars, almost the total the UK exported last year. 

    The Prime Minister visited Jaguar Land Rover last month announcing greater freedom for car manufacturers to back British industry in the face of global headwinds. During this visit he told workers he would accelerate trade deals to protect their jobs, their livelihoods, and to champion British business worldwide. 

    The UK steel industry – which was on the brink of collapse just weeks ago – will no longer face tariffs thanks to today’s deal. The Prime Minister negotiated the 25% tariff down to zero, meaning UK steelmakers can carry on exporting to the US. This follows last month’s intervention from the Prime Minister to take control of British Steel to save thousands of jobs in Scunthorpe.

    In a win for both nations, we have agreed new reciprocal market access on beef – with UK farmers given a tariff free quota for 13,000 metric tonnes. There will be no weakening of UK food standards on imports. 

    We will also remove the tariff on ethanol – which is used to produce beer – coming into the UK from the US, down to zero. 

    It is one of many international deals that the Government is landing to boost our economy – following an Indian trade deal which will add £4.8 billion to the UK economy and £2.2 billion in wages every year.

    Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, said:

    The new global era demands a government that steps up, not stands aside. 

    This historic deal delivers for British business and British workers protecting thousands of British jobs in key sectors including car manufacturing and steel. 

    My government has put Britain at the front of the queue because we want to work constructively with allies for mutual benefit rather than turning our back on the world.

    As VE Day reminds us, the UK has no greater ally than the United States, so I am delighted that eight decades on, under President Trump the special relationship remains a force for economic and national security. 

    This is jobs saved, jobs won but not job done and our teams will continue to work to build on this agreement. 

    My Government is determined to go further and faster to strengthen the UK’s economy, putting more money in working people’s pockets as part of our Plan for Change.

    Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said:

    I am delighted our calm approach and proactive engagement with the US has resulted in this deal which cuts tariffs for UK industry and cuts costs for businesses.

    Businesses across the country will be glad to see our approach working, but this is only the beginning. We look forward to strengthening our trading relationship with the US through a wider economic deal, which will help us to deliver on our Plan for Change to provide economic stability and make this country fit for the future.

    Adrian Mardell, Chief Executive Officer, JLR said:

    The car industry is vital to the UK’s economic prosperity, sustaining 250,000 jobs. We warmly welcome this deal which secures greater certainty for our sector and the communities it supports. We would like to thank the UK and US Governments for agreeing this deal at pace and look forward to continued engagement over the coming months.

    Work will continue on the remaining sectors – such as pharmaceuticals and remaining reciprocal tariffs. But – in an important move – the US has agreed that the UK will get preferential treatment in any further tariffs imposed as part of Section 232 investigations. The deal opens the way to a future UK US technology partnership through which our science-rich nations will collaborate in key areas of advanced technology, for example biotech, life sciences, quantum computing, nuclear fusion, aerospace and space. 

    The Digital Services Tax remains unchanged as part of today’s deal. Instead the two nations have agreed to work on a digital trade deal that will strip back paperwork for British firms trying to export to the US – opening the UK up to a huge market that will put rocket boosters on the UK economy.

    Updates to this page

    Published 8 May 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: Fact Sheet: U.S.-UK Reach Historic Trade Deal

    Source: The White House

    ESTABLISHING A NEW PARADIGM FOR OUR SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP: Today, on the 80th anniversary of Victory Day for World War II, President Donald J. Trump and Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a historic trade deal, providing American companies unprecedented access to the UK markets while bolstering U.S. national security. This is a great deal for America.

    • President Trump: “The deal includes billions of dollars of increased market access for American exports, especially in agriculture, dramatically increasing access for American beef, ethanol, and virtually all of the products produced by our great farmers.”
      • “The UK will reduce or eliminate numerous non-tariff barriers that unfairly discriminated against American products.”
      • “This is now turning out to be, really, a great deal for both countries.”
    • Prime Minister Starmer: “This is going to boost trade between and across our countries. It’s going to not only protect jobs, but create jobs, opening market access.”
    • This trade deal will significantly expand U.S. market access in the UK, creating a $5 billion opportunity for new exports for U.S. farmers, ranchers, and producers.
      • This includes more than $700 million in ethanol exports and $250 million in other agricultural products, like beef.
      • It commits the countries to work together to enhance industrial and agricultural market access.
      • It closes loopholes and increases U.S. firms’ competitiveness in the UK’s procurement market.
      • It ensures streamlined customs procedures for U.S. exports.
      • It establishes high standard commitments in the areas of intellectual property, labor, and environment.
      • It maximizes the competitiveness and secures the supply chain of U.S. aerospace manufacturers through preferential access to high-quality UK aerospace components.
      • It creates a secure supply chain for pharmaceutical products.
    • The reciprocal tariff rate of 10%, as originally announced on Liberation Day, is in effect.
    • The United States will agree to an alternative arrangement for the Section 232 tariffs on UK autos.
      • Under the deal, the first 100,000 vehicles imported into the U.S. by UK car manufacturers each year are subject to the reciprocal rate of 10% and any additional vehicles each year are subject to 25% rates.
    • The United States also recognizes the economic security measures taken by the UK to combat global steel excess capacity and will negotiate an alternative arrangement to the Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum.
      • This deal creates a new trading union for steel and aluminum.
    • This U.S.-UK trade deal will usher in a golden age of new opportunity for U.S. exporters and level the playing fields for American producers.
    • Today’s action also sets the tone for other trading partners to promote reciprocal trade with the United States.

    A FRAMEWORK TO BOLSTER ECONOMIC SECURITY: President Trump continues to advance the interests of the American people, enhancing market access for American exporters and lowering tariff and non-tariff barriers to protect our economic and national security.

    • On April 18, President Trump had a call with Prime Minister Starmer to discuss our bilateral trade relationship.
    • U.S. total goods trade with the UK was an estimated $148 billion in 2024.
    • The UK average applied agricultural tariff is 9.2% while the U.S. average applied agricultural tariff (prior to April 2) was 5%.
    • The UK maintains certain tariff and non-tariff barriers that restrict market access and create an unfair playing field for American workers and businesses.
      • For example, the UK imposes tariffs that can exceed 125% on meat, poultry, and dairy products on top of maintaining non-science-based standards that adversely affect U.S. exports.
    • On April 2, 2025, Liberation Day, President Trump imposed a 10% tariff on all countries to address unfair trade practices that have contributed to America’s trade deficit and imbalances in order to better protect American workers and our national security. 

    A MILESTONE IN ADVANCING AN AMERICA FIRST TRADE POLICY: Since Day One, President Trump challenged the assumption that American workers and businesses must tolerate unfair trade practices that have disadvantaged our workers and businesses for decades and contributed to our historic trade deficit.

    • Reversing these conditions and addressing the lack of reciprocity in America’s trade relationships will bring about a new Golden Age and Make America Great Again.
    • President Trump continues to advance the interests of the American people, enhancing market access for American exporters and lowering tariff and non-tariff barriers.
    • The Economic Prosperity Deal with the United Kingdom is a critical step forward in a special relationship to promote reciprocal trade with a key ally and partner.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Dulce Man Indicted for Federal Assault Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ALBUQUERQUE – A Dulce man has been charged by indictment with assault following an alleged incident that left the victim with severe injuries.

    According to court documents, on February 1, 2025, James William Julian, 25, an enrolled member of the Jicarilla Apache Nation, assaulted and seriously injured John Doe.

    Julian is charged with assault resulting in serious bodily injury and will remain in custody pending trial, which has not been set. If convicted, Julian faces up to 10 years in prison.

    U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison and Philip Russell, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

    The Farmington Resident Agency of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from the Jicarilla Apache Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meg Tomlinson is prosecuting the case.

    An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: B.C. ranchers, farmers urged to protect livestock as wildfire risk increases

    With wildfire season fast approaching, B.C. ranchers and farmers are encouraged to register the location of their livestock to protect their animals during emergencies.

    “Ranchers and farmers are deeply committed to the well-being of their animals, especially in times of crisis,” said Lana Popham, Minister of Agriculture and Food. “By registering with Premises ID, they ensure emergency responders have access to fast and accurate information — providing critical support and peace of mind when every second counts.” 

    Premises ID is mandatory in British Columbia. Registration is free and confidential. The program helps link livestock and poultry to the geographic areas where they are kept. This information helps emergency responders reach animals faster so they can quickly prioritize assistance during evacuations or animal disease outbreaks.

    “As we approach another wildfire season, it is important that we use what we have learned from the previous years of fire events,” said Kevin Boon, general manager, BC Cattlemen’s Association. “Premises ID has become a cornerstone of our communications and co-ordination for livestock welfare and movement. Making sure your operation is registered is one more way to help us help you with things like the Ranch Liaison and Range Rider programs.”

    Premises ID is a key component of B.C.’s animal traceability system, which contributes to ensuring stable, local meat supply chains and market access for livestock producers throughout the province.

    “Registering for a Premises ID through this provincial program makes it easier for local governments to support residents with large animals during emergencies when evacuation is required,” said Jamie Vieira, general manager of operations, Thompson-Nicola Regional District. “In recent years, our emergency operations centre has been able to support residents more quickly when they have a Premises ID. Whether residents have a hobby farm or a large agricultural production, we encourage all residents to make sure they have a Premises ID set up.”

    Quick Facts:

    • The main priority of the mandatory Premises ID program is to help producers and communities prepare for emergencies and be better equipped to respond to them.
    • There are more than 10,000 ranchers and farmers registered with Premises ID with 100% supply-managed (i.e., dairy cattle and poultry) participation and over 80% of cattle producers.
    • Premises ID is one of three pillars of an effective livestock traceability system, along with animal identification and animal movement reporting. 
    • Premises ID registration is currently mandatory in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Quebec and Prince Edward Island.

    Learn More:

    Premises ID registration: https://apps.nrs.gov.bc.ca/ext/pid-ext/

    Additional information on who needs to register for premises ID and what types of animals, is available here: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/industry/agriculture-seafood/programs/premises-id

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Carbajal, House Democrats Lead Fight Against Republican Cuts to Medicaid and Food Assistance

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Salud Carbajal (CA-24)

    As Republicans push an extreme budget that hands $7 trillion in giveaways to billionaires and big corporations, U.S. Representative Salud Carbajal (D-CA-24) joined House Democrats in introducing legislation to block the extreme and unprecedented cuts to Medicaid and food assistance in the Republican budget.

    “The Republican budget is harmful to the Central Coast’s working families—threatening to gut Medicaid, SNAP, and food assistance just to hand out more tax breaks to billionaires like Elon Musk,” said Rep. Carbajal. “I’m proud to stand with my Democratic colleagues to introduce the Hands Off Medicaid and SNAP Act, because no family should have to forgo medical care or go hungry while the ultra-wealthy get another tax giveaway.”

    While Republican leaders claim they won’t cut Medicaid benefits, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office confirmed that the Republican budget would result in the largest Medicaid cuts in U.S. history (see fact sheet here). The Republican proposal demands slashing at least $880 billion from programs under the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which is impossible without devastating cuts to Medicaid, a critical program that provides essential health care to nearly one in three Americans.


    The Republican budget also demands at least $230 billion in cuts to programs under the House Agriculture Committee, threatening the largest-ever cut to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which helps over 42 million Americans afford groceries. These cuts to food and health assistance come as grocery and health care costs remain high—and as Donald Trump advances a new wave of tariffs that would amount to the largest middle-class tax increase in 50 years, costing households an estimated $3,800 annually.

    Meanwhile, the proposed cuts would be used to help pay for tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans. According to the nonpartisan Yale Budget Lab, nearly 70 percent of the benefits of the major policies in the Republican budget would go to the top 5 percent of earners. While the top 0.1 percent gets an annual tax cut of $314,266, working and middle-class families would be left to bear the burden of higher costs and reduced access to health care and food assistance.

    The Hands Off Medicaid and SNAP Act would protect families by prohibiting Republicans from weaponizing the reconciliation process to cut benefits or remove individuals from Medicaid and SNAP. This would help ensure that tens of millions of Americans continue to have access to essential health care and food assistance (district-level data is available here).

    The text of the Hands Off Medicaid and SNAP Act is available here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Sorensen Leads Push to Expand Rural Broadband Access with Two Bills

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Eric Sorensen (IL-17)

    Congressman Eric Sorensen (IL-17) announced the reintroduction of two bipartisan bills — the Rural Broadband Assistance Act and the ReConnecting Rural America Act — to expand access to affordable, high-speed internet in rural communities across Illinois and the country. 

    “Every hometown in Illinois deserves the necessary tools to stay connected and grow,” said Congressman Eric Sorensen. “Whether it’s helping our neighbors get the support they need to apply for broadband funding or strengthening programs that bring faster internet to places that need it most, these bills are about making sure rural America isn’t left behind.” 

    The Rural Broadband Assistance Act will make it easier for small towns, local governments, nonprofits, and rural businesses to access expert support when applying for broadband funding — making sure communities have the help they need to get connected. 

    The ReConnecting Rural America Act, introduced alongside Congressman Zach Nunn (IA-03) and co-led by Representative Gabe Vasquez (D-NM), strengthens the USDA’s successful ReConnect Program by reauthorizing it, improving service speed requirements, and ensuring communities most in need are prioritized for funding. 

    Both bills reflect Congressman Sorensen’s ongoing commitment to bridging the digital divide and delivering real results for rural Illinois. Congressman Sorensen is hoping to include both pieces of legislation in the Farm Bill. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: VIDEO: Ricketts Promotes Renewable Fuels and Nebraska’s Farmers During Press Call

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Pete Ricketts (Nebraska)
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R-NE) highlighted his efforts to promote renewable fuels and Nebraska’s farmers during his weekly press call. Ricketts recently led a resolution declaring May 2025 as Renewable Fuels Month in America. He spoke with members of Nebraska press about the resolution:
    “Nebraska farmers fuel the world through the production of renewable fuels like ethanol and biodiesel,” said Ricketts. “Renewable fuels save consumers money at the pump and support Nebraska agriculture. They clean our environment and support American energy security.”
    Ricketts also underscored the cost savings renewable fuels provide Nebraskan families.
    “Biofuels save consumers money at the pump,” continued Ricketts. “Last time I filled up at Hy-Vee, I saved 55 cents per gallon with E10 compared to the regular 89 octane. That’s saving money at the pump. That’s real relief.”
    In addition, Ricketts described the economic benefits of biofuels for Nebraska’s farmers. Nebraska’s 25 ethanol plants have capacity to make nearly 2.2 billion gallons of biofuel each year. These plants provide more than 1,300 good-paying jobs with an annual economic impact of more than $6 billion.
    TRANSCRIPT:
    Senator Ricketts: “Thank you very much for joining this press call today. 
    “Nebraska farmers fuel the world through the production of renewable fuels like ethanol and biodiesel. 
    “Renewable fuels save consumers money at the pump and support Nebraska agriculture. 
    “They clean our environment and support American energy security. 
    “That’s why I introduced a bipartisan resolution designating May 2025 as Renewable Fuels Month in America. 
    “As Governor, you may recall I did that a lot for the state of Nebraska. We’re doing it for America now.
    “My resolution celebrates Nebraska’s farmers, rural communities, and home-grown energy. 
    “Biofuels save consumers money at the pump. 
    “Nebraska drivers saved at least $325 million last year by using ethanol blends like E10 and E15. 
    “During the summer months, drivers can save more than 30 cents per gallon. 
    “Owners of flex fuel vehicles, which can run on blends up to E85, can save even more. 
    “Last time I filled up at Hy-Vee, I saved 55 cents per gallon when I filled up with E10 compared to the regular 89 octane.  
    “That’s saving money at the pump.
    “That’s real relief. 
    “Biofuels support Nebraska agriculture. 
    “Our state is America’s second-largest ethanol producer. 
    “Our 25 ethanol plants have capacity to make nearly 2.2 billion gallons each year. 
    “These plants support more than 1,300 good-paying jobs. 
    “They bring an annual economic impact of more than $6 billion dollars. 
    “Biofuels help local farmers get better prices for their corn and soybeans. 
    “A typical dry mill ethanol plant adds nearly 50% more value to every bushel of corn processed last year. 
    “That’s value-added agriculture. 
    “These fuels help drive our economy forward. 
    “Biofuels can help clean our environment. 
    “Ethanol reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 44% to 52% compared to regular gasoline. 
    “E15 also reduces other pollutants like carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulates.
    “That means cleaner air for our communities. 
    “Biofuels also support American energy security. 
    “The Renewable Fuels Association estimates that U.S.-produced ethanol displaced the need for 630 million barrels of imported oil in 2024. 
    “Using home-grown fuels means we rely less on authoritarian countries like Venezuela.
    “Authoritarian countries don’t share our values.
    “We should never depend on them for energy when we have proven solutions right here in Nebraska. 
    “This resolution is one of my many ways I’m supporting renewable fuels. 
    “I led the fight against Biden’s EV mandate. 
    “I introduced the Flex Fuel Fairness Act to expand access to flex fuel vehicles. 
    “I’m pushing to pass Senator Deb Fischer’s bill to allow year-round E15 sales nationwide. 
    “I introduced the Renewable Fuel for Ocean-Going Vessels Act with Democrat Senator Amy Klobuchar. 
    “That bipartisan bill helps biofuels power cargo ships and other large vessels. 
    “I also support the Farm to Fly Act, which will develop the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel. 
    “Consumers, producers, and industry would all benefit from these expanded opportunities. 
    “Nebraska’s biofuels producers help fuel America and the world. 
    “Every day is a good day to choose biofuels. 
    “As you get ready to hit the road this summer, consider filling up on E15. 
    “You’ll be supporting local producers, helping clean our environment, and promoting American energy security. 
    “You’ll also be saving money at the pump! 
    “Now that’s a win for everybody.”

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Epiq and BigHand Partner to Launch New Integrated Business Transformation Solution for Law Firms and Legal Departments

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, May 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Epiq announced today a partnership with BigHand to launch a new integrated solution that seamlessly tracks outsourced business services.

    The workflow management application is currently being adopted by two Am Law 10 law firms with others in the pipeline. These organizations are now able to optimize resource allocation, improve productivity, and maintain a synchronized workflow ecosystem across departments.

    Epiq and BigHand have developed an API integration that enables BigHand’s Workflow Management to work seamlessly with Epiq’s workflow system, Epiq Connect. This seamless connection enables law firms and corporate legal departments to partner more effectively with Epiq service teams by submitting and tracking requests for contracted business transformation services. This collaboration enhances how legal teams delegate, manage, and measure support services—all in one connected experience. The solution accomplishes the following:

    • Improves efficiency, accountability, and turnaround times across legal support workflows
    • Delivers robust task-level reporting and operational transparency
    • Unifies the strength of both platforms and service expertise

    The partnership will also provide organizations using Epiq Connect with financial metrics and analysis through BigHand’s warehousing and dashboarding capabilities. This collaboration is designed to give clients the latest tools and resources, ensuring legal experts make data-led decisions on staffing, training, and resource deployment. Having objective performance data across internal and external teams is game-changing for organizations looking to maximize client service and drive efficiency.

    “The Epiq and BigHand partnership empowers organizations to leverage strategic, data-driven decision-making to drive operational innovation and unlock cost efficiencies,” said Michelle Connolly, Senior Vice President of Strategy and Solutions at Epiq. “While we’ve partnered with BigHand through mutual clients for years, this new integration will enable a more proactive approach across our shared customer bases and provide unmatched efficiency and insight. This enables Epiq to continue building a roadmap that aligns with our clients’ evolving needs – today and into the future.”

    The integration streamlines processes reducing manual effort and ensures real-time visibility into operational functions. By leveraging this integration, clients can automate the exchange of workflow data, like service requests, between the two systems to enhance efficiency and accuracy in task assignment, status updates, and reporting. The technology provides valuable data for the following services:

    • Document production
    • Copier and printer services
    • Courier services
    • Inbound package management
    • Word processing
    • Facilities management services
    • Records and information governance services
    • Supply management services
    • Technology services

    “Supporting our clients is at the heart of everything we do,” said Eric Wangler, Global Legal President of BigHand. “Many of our workflow clients use outsourcing partners like Epiq, and the demand for the seamless transfer of work and data on that work has continued to increase. Epiq’s desire to have the API connection for our technology will be a big value-add for our mutual clients and future clients alike. Our partners are essential to our success, helping us produce and support better outcomes for our clients across the world.”

    Epiq’s business transformation team is entrusted by hundreds of clients worldwide, including 91 of the top 100 law firms, to drive organizational and operational innovation. This business process outsourcing is provided through highly skilled subject matter experts, proven best practices, and advanced technology solutions.

    To stay connected to these industry trends, register for the webinar “Time for Change: How Data-Driven Firms Are Solving Workflow Challenges,” on June 4, 2025 at 11am ET. In this webinar, BigHand and Epiq will provide strategic insights into the state of the industry, drawing from the 2025 BigHand Legal Workflow report, which examines the challenges, themes, and focus areas currently faced by law firms.

    About Epiq
    Epiq, a technology and services leader, takes on large-scale and complex tasks for corporate legal departments, law firms, and business professionals by integrating people, process, technology, and data. Clients rely on Epiq to streamline legal and compliance, settlement, and business administration workflows to drive efficiency, minimize risk, and improve cost savings. With a presence in 19 countries, our values define who we are and how we partner with clients and communities. Learn how Epiq’s approximately 8,000 people worldwide create meaningful change at www.epiqglobal.com. 

    About BigHand 
    BigHand is a leading global provider of technology solutions for busy legal professionals that gives data and insights to increase value and profits​. BigHand’s technology helps law firms to identify improvements across lawyer & support staff, document production, financial performance, and matter pricing. BigHand enables firms to give their customers a better experience while empowering their people to be their best. The challenges facing law firm professionals are bigger than ever. Understanding which areas to focus on and how to drive change simply, while looking after your clients, is not easy. BigHand’s team of experts work with 4,200 global law firms, including 82% of Am Law 200 and 83% of UK Top 200, to help solve these challenges. For more information, visit BigHand.com.

    Press Contact
    Carrie Trent
    Epiq, Senior Director of Communications and Public Relations
    Carrie.Trent@epiqglobal.com

    Briana McCrory,
    BigHand Chief Marketing Officer
    Briana.mccrory@bighand.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Landsat at Work: Satellites Help Extinguish Wildfire Risk

    Source: US Geological Survey

    Wildfire Risk to Communities (wildfirerisk.org) is a USDA Forest Service program that incorporates LANDFIRE data to help assess risk across the entire United States.

    The LANDFIRE project uses Landsat satellite data to map wildland fuels. When combined with information about weather and population, LANDFIRE data can then be used to map wildfire risk. 

    The Community Wildfire Defense Grant program uses LANDFIRE-based wildfire risk data available on the Wildfire Risk to Communities website, wildfirerisk.org, a Forest Service program mandated by Congress in 2018.

    “Since wildfirerisk.org launched in 2020, there have been 2 million views of the website,” said Kelly Pohl, associate director of Headwaters Economics, a nonprofit research group that helps manage the user dashboard.  “LANDFIRE is a fundamental building block for what we do at wildfirerisk.org, and without it, it would be nearly impossible to continue to map wildfire risk for the country.”

    LANDFIRE data is available at no charge on its website LANDFIRE.gov, a website at the U.S. Geological Survey’s Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center. 

    This section from LANDFIRE’s Existing Vegetation Cover (2023) shows the four counties in Montana—Gallatin, Park, Stillwater and Carbon—that commissioned the Trans-County Wildfire Risk Assessment. Dark green pixels indicate tree cover; orange, herb cover; light yellow, row crops; and red or pink, developed land in towns and cities. 

    Another example of LANDFIRE data helping save lives and property comes from four Montana counties that commissioned an assessment of their risk for wildfires, paid for in part by a grant from CWDG. The four counties—Gallatin, Park, Stillwater and Carbon—all include parts of the Custer-Gallatin National Forest and touch several wilderness areas. Two of the counties border Yellowstone National Park.

    Protecting homes and people’s lives amid so much forestland is a major concern, said Patrick Lonergan, chief of Emergency Management and Fire for Gallatin County. “Rarely does the main body of a fire burn into a community and burn the community down,” he said. “The main body of the fire produces embers because of the fuel makeup and the intensity of the fire, which then launches embers, starting spot fires and directly igniting buildings.” 

    Vibrant Planet, the company conducting the assessment, uses LANDFIRE data to map fuels—the plant life on the ground that might burn—and then adds more data like wind and weather conditions to predict what it calls Sources of Ember Load to Buildings.

    Once potential sources of embers are identified, communities can target those areas strategically before a wildfire even starts in order to prevent homes and other personal property from burning.

    Landsat Next is a trio of satellites with expanded capabilities that will orbit Earth more frequently than current Landsat satellites.

    In 2024, the project started releasing annual LANDFIRE updates. “If you’re not making your decisions based on good, usable data, then you’re just sort of punching in the dark,” Brooks said. “The LANDFIRE datasets and the website are valuable tools to help you make smart decisions.”

    LANDFIRE will gain even more insight in the future with the next generation of Landsat. A trio of satellites is planned to launch in late 2030/early 2031 as Landsat Next, capturing far more detail about features of the Earth’s surface more frequently than current Landsat satellites. “LANDFIRE welcomes every bit of data Landsat Next will provide, especially the expanded infrared capabilities that will help gauge the health of vegetation as well as potentially help differentiate additional vegetation types. I’m also hopeful new methods for analysis of fire damage will spring from the expanded bands keyed towards this very problem,” said LANDFIRE Project Manager Jon Dewitz.

    Note: LANDFIRE products are generated at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center through an interagency partnership between the Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, with The Nature Conservancy as an additional partner. Both Landsat and LANDFIRE data are available to the public at no cost.

    Disclaimer: This web page contains hypertext links to information created and maintained by other organizations. USGS is not responsible for the content of any off-site pages. Reference herein to any specific commercial products, processes, or services by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not constitute or imply its endorsement or recommendation by the United States Government. 

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: St. Clair Shores Man Convicted of Importing, Possessing, and Transferring Machineguns, and Failing to Keep Proper Records as a Federal Firearms Licensee

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    DETROIT – A St. Clair Shores man was convicted by a federal jury this week on charges of illegally importing, possessing, and transferring machineguns, as well as failing to keep proper records as a Federal Firearms Licensee (FFL), United States Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr., announced today.

    Gorgon was joined in the announcement by ATF Detroit Special Agent in Charge James Deir.

    Chase Farmer, 26, was convicted following a week-long jury trial before United States District Judge Gershwin Drain. 

    Evidence presented at trial established that in 2020, Chase Farmer applied for and received a license to deal in firearms. His business was called Shall Not Be Infringed LLC. Farmer did not have a license to import firearms, including machineguns. Yet from 2020 to 2021, he made four orders on a now-defunct Russian website called Silencer Sales for machinegun conversion devices, including Glock switches and drop in auto sears. Farmer paid for the devices in Rubles and used an alias to avoid detection by law enforcement. Although Farmer purchased and received approximately 30 machinegun conversion devices from Silencer Sales, when the ATF searched Farmer’s home and business in 2022, he only had two drop in auto sears in his possession. Farmer was unable to account for the 28 missing machinegun conversion devices. After deliberating for approximately an hour, the jury returned a verdict of guilty on all counts.

    U.S. Attorney Gorgon stated, “Machinegun conversion devices gravely endanger our community by turning semi-automatic weapons into fully automatic machineguns. Chase Farmer sought out the ability to deal and manufacture firearms, but he flagrantly ignored his responsibility to follow the law. Farmer is responsible for putting 28 machinegun conversion devices on the street and potentially in the hands of criminals.”

    “This wasn’t negligence – it was pure greed at its core,” said ATF Detroit Field Division Special Agent in Charge James Deir. “Chase Farmer abused the trust the government placed in him as a federal firearms licensee to nefariously acquire and distribute illegal conversion devices, using fake identities and foreign currency to avoid detection by law enforcement. This is what illegal firearms trafficking looks like: An individual putting personal greed before our community’s safety.  This case is representative of ATF’s core mission to protect the public.  Mr. Farmer’s actions were a clear and present danger to our overall safety by knowingly putting 28 machine gun conversion devices on our streets.”

    Farmer will be sentenced by Judge Drain in the summer of 2025. He faces a maximum sentence of up to 10 years’ incarceration.

    This case was investigated by the ATF and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Diane Princ and Sarah Alsaden.   

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI: How the Industry of Drones is Evolving Rapidly with New Trends and Technologies Emerging Regularly

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    PALM BEACH, Fla., May 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — FN Media Group News Commentary – Experts in the drone industry are excited about its future. One such player said: “As we soar into a new era of technological innovation, drones are rapidly becoming a significant part of our everyday lives. From aerial photography to package delivery and from environmental monitoring to emergency response, drones are revolutionizing numerous industries.” They continued: “Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) are at the forefront of drone technology advancements. Companies… are leading the way in this area with drones that can navigate complex environments autonomously using AI.  The market for AI in drones is expected to grow significantly, impacting sectors like agriculture, construction, and security. According to a report by MarketsandMarkets, the market size for drones with AI is expected to grow from $2.1 billion in 2022 to $6.5 billion by 2027. The trend towards increased autonomy in drone technology is gaining momentum.  Companies are developing drones that can perform complex tasks without human intervention, such as detecting leaks, inspecting pipelines, and even charging themselves. This increased autonomy is expected to boost efficiency and productivity in various sectors, including agriculture, construction, and logistics. For example, autonomous drones can be used for precision agriculture, where they can monitor crop health, apply fertilizers, and even harvest crops. The enormous commercial potential is why the global precision agriculture market size is expected to reach $19.24 billion by 2030.”   Active Companies in the drone industry today include ZenaTech, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZENA), AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV), Ondas Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: ONDS), Palladyne AI Corp. (NASDAQ: PDYN), Red Cat Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: RCAT).

    MarketsandMarkets added: “Drone swarming, the coordinated operation of multiple drones, is another emerging trend. Each drone in a swarm operates autonomously yet in harmony with the others, allowing the swarm to cover larger areas and perform tasks more efficiently than a single drone. Companies… are pioneering this technology, using it to create stunning light shows at live events. However, the potential applications of drone swarming extend far beyond entertainment. For example, in search and rescue operations, a swarm of drones can cover a large area to search for signs of life, allowing rescue teams to locate and reach victims more quickly. This technology could prove invaluable in the aftermath of natural disasters, where time is of the essence. The world of drones is evolving rapidly, with new trends and technologies emerging regularly. These advancements are opening up new applications and markets, from agriculture and construction to healthcare and entertainment. As we continue to explore the potential of these versatile machines, it’s clear that drones will play an increasingly important role in our future.”

    ZenaTech (NASDAQ:ZENA) ZenaDrone Tests Proprietary Camera Enabling IQ Nano Drone Swarms for US Defense Applications and Blue UAS Submission – ZenaTech, Inc. (FSE: 49Q) (BMV: ZENA) (“ZenaTech”), a technology company specializing in AI (Artificial Intelligence) drones, Drone as a Service (DaaS), enterprise SaaS, and Quantum Computing solutions, announces that its subsidiary ZenaDrone is testing a new proprietary specialized camera that enables more efficient indoor applications such as inventory and security management, when utilizing IQ Nano drone swarms for commercial and US defense applications. The new camera prototype developed by its Taiwan component manufacturing subsidiary, Spider Vision Sensors, in collaboration with its certified electronics manufacturing partner, Suntek Global, will enable faster and more precise collection of data including multiple bar codes simultaneously scanned by multiple drones in a drone swarm. The company plans to apply for Blue UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) certification that lists and validates drones for military and government use.

    “Our Spider Vision Sensors subsidiary in collaboration with Suntek Global, has helped us speed up development of customized and specialized cameras required for our innovative drone swarm applications for commercial and defense customers. This partnership will continue to be invaluable as we develop our NDAA-compliant supply chain and received Blue UAS certification which will allow military and federal agencies to directly purchase our drones.,” said CEO Shaun Passley, Ph.D.

    Military and Defense departments use small autonomous indoor drones like the 10X10 inch IQ Nano for various applications such as inventory management, indoor building reconnaissance, search and rescue, training simulations, and explosives detection. ZenaDrone is also engaged in a paid trial which includes developing drone swarm applications for inventory management and security applications with a multinational auto parts manufacturer customer.

    A drone swarm is a coordinated group of autonomous drones that communicate and work together using AI and real-time data sharing, to perform tasks collaboratively without direct human control. Drone swarms enhance efficiency, accuracy, automation, and performance compared to a single drone. Autonomous drones can rapidly scan thousands of bar codes or RFID tags per second with high accuracy, providing real-time visibility into inventory without disrupting workflows. A drone swarm can also cover more ground simultaneously, dramatically reducing inventory audit times and manual labour while providing near-total inventory visibility.

    An AI drone swarm for indoor security and surveillance enhances coverage, response time, and efficiency by autonomously patrolling large areas, detecting threats, and providing real-time situational awareness. Unlike stationary cameras or human patrols, drone swarms can dynamically adapt to security breaches, track intruders, and coordinate movements to eliminate blind spots. AI-driven analytics enable them to identify anomalies, recognize faces, and detect unauthorized activity with high precision, reducing false alarms and improving security decision-making. Their autonomous nature minimizes human labor costs while ensuring 24/7 monitoring in complex environments like warehouses, data centers, or commercial facilities.

    The ZenaDrone IQ Nano is available in 10×10 and 20×20-inch sizes, designed to perform regular and frequent inspections such as bar code or RFID scanning, facility maintenance inspections, security monitoring, 3D indoor mapping and other applications inside a warehouse, distribution, or plant facility. It is designed for autonomous use featuring integrated sensors, high-quality cameras, data collection and analysis including AI methodologies. Weighing 1.5kg and with a flight time of at least 20 minutes before utilizing the automatic battery recharging station, it is designed for hovering stability and safety with obstacle avoidance capabilities.   Continued… Read this full release by visiting: https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-zena/

    In Additional ZENA News: ZenaTech’s (NASDAQ:ZENA) Expands Ireland Office Offering Drone as a Service (DaaS) Including Precision Agriculture to a European Market Growing at 28.6% Annually – ZenaTech, Inc. (FSE: 49Q) (BMV: ZENA) (“ZenaTech”), a technology company specializing in AI (Artificial Intelligence) drones, Drone as a Service (DaaS), enterprise SaaS, and Quantum Computing solutions, announces it will be expanding operations and opening a new, larger office and its European Headquarters in Dublin, Ireland. The new hub will facilitate the Company’s drone sales and DaaS drone services — including precision agriculture solutions — to a growing UK and European market. The Company anticipates the official grand opening during the summer of 2025.

    Strategically located near Dublin Airport and accessible via all major motorways, the new office location will serve a growing customer base in Ireland and enable growth across Europe, catering to agriculture as well as construction, renewable energy — including wind and solar farms — golf courses, racecourses, and warehouse and logistics.

    “Expanding our Dublin office and establishing a European HQ marks a new chapter in our strategy to scale our drones and DaaS offerings globally while servicing the fastest growing agricultural drone markets located in Europe. Our AI-powered drone solutions are designed to boost crop yields while reducing operational costs and provide smart, data-driven insights — empowering crop monitoring and health assessment, nutrient and resource optimization, and profitability,” said CEO Shaun Passley, Ph.D.

    The European agricultural drone market was valued at approximately USD 4.6 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach USD 43.23 billion by 2032, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 28.58% according to Market Data Forecast . This growth is fueled by the adoption of drones for crop spraying, mapping, pest control, seeding, and remote sensing, which enhance productivity and resource efficiency in farming. Growth is also supported by favorable European government policies and a strong focus on sustainable farming practices.    Continued… Read this full release by visiting: https://www.zenatech.com/newsroom/

    Other recent developments in the drone industry include:

    To meet the emerging air threats of today and the rapidly evolving threats of tomorrow, AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVAV) recently announced Titan 4, the next generation of its battle-proven, warfighter-trusted Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems (C-UAS) technology. Titan 4 is a smaller, lighter, more powerful, highly extensible Radio Frequency (RF)-based solution to detect and defeat Group 1 and 2 drone threats.

    Titan 4 is portable and mission-adaptable—supporting mobile, dismounted, or fixed-site use—and can deploy in under five minutes to identify and neutralize threats, creating a protective dome around personnel and infrastructure. Titan 4 is 17% lighter and 73% smaller than its dual-chassis predecessor, now integrated into a single compact chassis as compared to its dual-chassis predecessor. It offers nearly 250% more transmit power with 540W of total output over six RF bands to address both current and emerging threats. For enhanced airspace awareness, AV has integrated its Titan-SV system within Titan 4 to provide operators with AI/ML-backed passive, long-range precision threat detection.

    Ondas Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: ONDS), a leading provider of private industrial wireless networks and commercial drone and automated data solutions, recently announced it has secured a $3.4 million order for its Iron Drone Raider Counter-UAS system from renowned European defense contractor for their governmental end client. This marks the initial deployment of the Iron Drone Raider in Europe and represents a major milestone in the global expansion of Ondas’ counter-UAS business.

    “Ongoing geopolitical instability and the rapid proliferation of hostile drone technologies have intensified the urgency for effective counter-UAS capabilities across NATO-aligned and partner nations,” said Eric Brock, Chairman and CEO of Ondas. “This order reflects the rising global demand for autonomous aerial defense systems that can be rapidly deployed, scaled, and adapted to modern threat environments. Iron Drone Raider delivers a differentiated solution for military and homeland security operators charged with safeguarding critical infrastructure and civilian populations from increasingly sophisticated aerial threats.”

    Palladyne AI Corp. (NASDAQ: PDYN), a developer of artificial intelligence software for robotic platforms in the defense and commercial sectors, and Red Cat Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: RCAT), a drone technology company integrating robotic hardware and software for military, government, and commercial operations, recently announced a significant testing milestone in their ongoing collaboration—the completion of an autonomous, cross-platform collaborative flight involving three diverse heterogeneous drones.

    During this most recent testing, which leveraged Red Cat’s Teal 2 and Black Widow drones and the Palladyne™ Pilot AI software, each platform operated using onboard edge computing and constrained communication protocols without reliance on centralized infrastructure to communicate. The system enabled real-time, distributed detection and tracking of multiple dynamic and static ground objects—including humans and vehicles—in different regions of interest, providing a single operator with comprehensive situational awareness. The two companies previously announced a successful two-drone flight operation in January 2025, and Palladyne AI announced a single-drone testing scenario in December 2024 to autonomously identify, prioritize, and track terrestrial targets.

    About FN Media Group:

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    DISCLAIMER: FN Media Group LLC (FNM), which owns and operates FinancialNewsMedia.com and MarketNewsUpdates.com, is a third party publisher and news dissemination service provider, which disseminates electronic information through multiple online media channels. FNM is NOT affiliated in any manner with any company mentioned herein. FNM and its affiliated companies are a news dissemination solutions provider and are NOT a registered broker/dealer/analyst/adviser, holds no investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security. FNM’s market updates, news alerts and corporate profiles are NOT a solicitation or recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities. The material in this release is intended to be strictly informational and is NEVER to be construed or interpreted as research material. All readers are strongly urged to perform research and due diligence on their own and consult a licensed financial professional before considering any level of investing in stocks. All material included herein is republished content and details which were previously disseminated by the companies mentioned in this release. FNM is not liable for any investment decisions by its readers or subscribers.  Investors are cautioned that they may lose all or a portion of their investment when investing in stocks. For current services performed FNM has been compensated fifty one hundred dollars for news coverage of the current press releases issued by ZenaTech, Inc. by the Company. FNM HOLDS NO SHARES OF ANY COMPANY NAMED IN THIS RELEASE.

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    SOURCE: FN Media Group

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Humans are killing helpful insects in hundreds of ways − simple steps can reduce the harm

    Source: The Conversation – USA – By Christopher Halsch, Ecologist, Binghamton University, State University of New York

    Dragonflies, just like bees and butterflies, face threats that humans can help prevent. Christopher Halsch

    Insects are all around us – an ant on the sidewalk, a bee buzzing by, a butterfly floating on the breeze – and they shape the world we experience. They pollinate flowering plants, decompose waste, control pests, and are critical links in food chains.

    Despite how much humans rely on insects, our actions are reducing their populations in many parts of the world. A recent study found that the United States lost more than 20% of its butterflies over the past two decades. Sadly, this rate of decline is not unusual. Many studies have found that insect populations are declining at 1% to 2% per year.

    To understand why this is happening, Status of Insects, an international research group we are part of, reviewed 175 recent studies on the causes of insect decline. We found hundreds of potential causes that are all highly connected, almost all of which stem directly or indirectly from human activities.

    The drivers of insect decline are connected

    The causes of insect decline are led by a few major sources: intensive agriculture, climate change, pollution, invasive species and habitat loss. Some drivers are bigger threats than others, but all of them play a role in causing insect declines.

    Importantly, many insects experience more than one of these stressors at the same time.

    The Mitchell’s satyr butterfly relies on prairie wetlands, many of which have been drained or altered, and is now critically endangered. Its greatest threats are habitat loss and insecticides from agricultural areas. This one was spotted in Michigan.
    U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

    Urban risks

    Picture a moth in a city park. It is threatened by habitat loss as the city grows, but its habitat may also be threatened by invasive plants that escape from gardens. At the same time, it is suffering from the effects of pollution – light, air and noise pollution are common in urban areas.

    Light pollution is especially important for moths because they are attracted to artificial lights at night, and so are their predators. Spiders, for example, have learned to hunt in lit areas. When moth species that fly at night spend a lot of time around lights, they can expend a lot of energy, leaving less for other activities, such as pollinating plants.

    In addition to being pollinators, moths also control plant growth by eating leaves during their caterpillar stage. And they provide food for many species of birds and bats, which play their own important roles in ecosystems.

    Risks on farmland and orchards

    Intensive agriculture is one of the most commonly discussed drivers of insect decline. It is also heavily connected to other causes.

    Consider native bees in agricultural areas. As agriculture expands, their native habitat is reduced. Agricultural landscapes also tend to have high levels of chemical pollution – especially insecticides, fungicides, herbicides and fertilizers. Insecticides are designed to disrupt insect physiology and can directly harm bees, while herbicides indirectly disrupt bees by removing plants that provide food.

    Flowers, and the insects that rely on them, can fall victim to chemicals used on farms.
    Dixit Motiwala/Unsplash, CC BY

    Often, U.S. farms also use honeybees, native to Europe, for pollination. These introduced bees are easier to manage but can spread diseases and parasites into native bee populations.

    Native bees may be able to survive one of these threats, but all three together present a much bigger challenge.

    Polluted water can also harm insects

    Humans often focus on insects such as bees and butterflies because they are more visible, but many insects spend much of their life underwater, where they face another set of threats.

    For instance, dragonflies are aquatic when they are juveniles. The threats at this stage of life are no less severe but are entirely different from those facing adults.

    When water levels in streams or ponds decrease, that reduces young dragonflies’ habitat. These insects can also be threatened by water pollution from runoff and increases in water temperature with climate change.

    Successful conservation considers all the risks

    These connections mean humans must be thoughtful about conservation.

    Well-meaning actions such as reducing pollution or controlling invasive species can help, but they will have little effect if there is no habitat for insects to return to. Restoring habitat can have widespread benefits and potentially help insects respond to other threats.

    Many insects play important roles in humans’ lives. Caterpillars, for example, help keep plant growth under control.
    Christopher Halsch

    There are more insect species on Earth than species in any other plant or animal group. They can be found almost everywhere you look.

    Yet public attention is mostly focused on pollinators. That can leave other insects facing unaddressed human threats.

    Preserving and restoring water resources such as wetlands, lakes and streams is vital for aquatic insects like dragonflies. Many other insects spend much of their lives underground. Soil-dwelling insects, such as some beetles and flies, serve important functions, like decomposing dead plant material.

    Successful conservation also considers species throughout their life cycles. For instance, planting pollinator gardens provides nectar for adult hoverflies – an important but often overlooked pollinator. But a garden alone would not necessarily provide food for their larval stage, when many hoverflies decompose plant and animal matter.

    How to help insects

    The simplest way to help insects is by providing high-quality habitats.

    This includes supporting a variety of native plants that can provide both nectar and leaves, which are food for many herbivorous insects throughout their lives.

    A good habitat also provides places for insects to nest, such as bare ground or leaf litter. Bigger patches are better, but even small gardens can be helpful.

    Wildflower gardens can help insects thrive.
    California Native Plant Society/Flickr, CC BY

    At the same time, limiting exposure to other threats is important. Actions such as dimming artificial lights at night and reducing the use of pesticides can help.

    There are many reasons for insect decline, making population recovery an imposing challenge. But there are also many ways – large and small – that people, cities and companies can reduce the harm and help these valuable critters thrive.

    Christopher Halsch has received funding from the USDA NIFA (2022-67011-36563).

    Eliza Grames receives funding from the National Science Foundation (DEB 2225092).

    – ref. Humans are killing helpful insects in hundreds of ways − simple steps can reduce the harm – https://theconversation.com/humans-are-killing-helpful-insects-in-hundreds-of-ways-simple-steps-can-reduce-the-harm-255844

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI: Occupancy Analytics Leader Lambent Adds Two Higher Ed Veterans to its Board of Advisors

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    BOSTON, May 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Occupancy analytics software company Lambent today announced the addition of two new members to its Board of Advisors. Robert Wynkoop, Vice President of Operations and Finance at Covenant College, and Maria O’Callaghan-Cassidy, former Senior Associate Vice President, Campus Operations at the University of Richmond, join Lambent’s advisory board to help build on the company’s success working with higher education institutions and corporations. Both bring an invaluable perspective on how occupancy analytics can help optimize organizations’ approaches to real estate investment and space management while also providing employees, students and visitors with the best possible experiences in those spaces.

    “Rob and Maria both bring a great mix of operational and finance experience across higher education, government and corporate real estate,” said Julie Roberts, Lambent’s Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer. “Rob also has first-hand experience and success with the Lambent Spaces platform. That combination provides a really valuable perspective as we look to expand the value and footprint of our solutions across corporate and higher ed campuses.”

    In his role as Vice President of Operations and Finance at Covenant College, Wynkoop oversees finance and accounting, business operations, facilities and maintenance, human resources, and technology services. Before joining Covenant in 2024, he spent 11 years at Purdue University, where his team managed space administration, real estate and development, logistics and procurement services on campus and at the Purdue University Airport, the Purdue Memorial Union, and Purdue Conferences. While at Purdue, Wynkoop oversaw the implementation of the Lambent Spaces occupancy analytics platform that currently helps manage over one million square feet on its West Lafayette campus. That implementation has assisted Purdue in avoiding approximately $30 million in operating expenses through better space utilization. Earlier in his career, Wynkoop served at the Indiana Department of Administration (IDOA) under Governor Mitch Daniels, holding the position of commissioner from 2010 to 2013.

    O’Callaghan-Cassidy brings extensive experience in higher education facilities management and campus operations. Most recently as Senior Associate Vice President of Campus Operations at the University of Richmond, she led a team of 400+ professionals across dining services, campus business services, facilities operations, architecture and campus operations budget and finance. Previously, she spent 25 years at The Wharton School where she rose through the ranks from Manager of Scheduling and Facilities Services to Senior Director of Operations to Executive Director of Design & Construction and Facilities Planning and Operations.

    About Lambent
    Lambent is an occupancy analytics software company helping corporate and higher ed campuses optimize space utilization, facilities operations and real estate investments. Its SaaS platform, Lambent Spaces, leverages existing data sources such as Wi-Fi and sensors to provide anonymous and predictive analytics to inform decisions related to utilization, workplace experiences, planning, scheduling, and maintenance. The software delivers actionable intelligence so facilities professionals and space planners can make better use of the spaces they have. For more information, visit https://lambentspaces.com/.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Allied Energy Corporation Advances Gas Supply Infrastructure to Support Bitcoin Mining Partner at Thiel Site

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    • AGYP advances gas-to-power site for sustainable Bitcoin mining operations
    • Trapped gas converted to energy for off-grid AI & data infrastructure
    • Thiel site prepares final testing and computing equipment delivery
    • Natural gas solutions support decentralized computing and edge centers

    CARROLLTON, Texas, May 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Allied Energy Corporation (OTC: AGYP) (”AGYP”), a Texas-based energy company focused on revitalizing underutilized domestic oil and gas resources, is pleased to provide a project update from the Thiel site where AGYP and its partner, Louis Energy Inc., are building out the infrastructure to deliver natural gas to support off-grid computing applications for Louis Energy Inc.

    Key Infrastructure Achievements: Turning Trapped Gas into a Strategic Asset

    AGYP and Louis Energy Inc. have been actively preparing the Thiel site to safely and efficiently channel natural gas to mobile containers for high-density computing. Completed milestones include:

    • Delivery of second modular computing container
    • Installation of on-site mobile office
    • Electrical installation preparation between Generator 2 and Container 2
    • Perimeter security fencing underway
    • Gas supply systems under validation
    • Generator test scheduled (pending P-5 approval)
    • On-site technicians conducting diagnostics and testing

    Planned Operational Advancements: Preparing for Final Integration

    AGYP is entering the final phase of its infrastructure buildout at Thiel, including:

    • Final cable installations and system optimization
    • Delivery of 10 pallets of computing equipment scheduled for next week
    • Wi-Fi connectivity via Starlink
    • Generator testing and operational clearance
    • Surveillance system installation
    • Gas system gauges and fittings to be pressure tested

    Once regulatory approvals are received, the site will begin formal gas-to-power operations.

    The Bigger Picture: Trapped Gas – An Untapped National Resource

    Stranded and flared gas—once considered a waste byproduct—is rapidly gaining traction as a sustainable, low-cost power source for decentralized infrastructure. AGYP’s work at the Thiel site is part of a broader push to transform U.S. energy usage:

    Use Cases for Trapped Gas Beyond Data Mining:

    • AI & Machine Learning Compute Farms – Powering high-density GPU systems
    • Agritech – Supporting controlled-environment agriculture in remote areas
    • Hydrogen Production – Fueling clean hydrogen from hydrocarbon sources
    • Remote & Emergency Operations – Delivering mobile energy to military and disaster response sites
    • Rural Electrification – Bringing energy to underserved communities through microgrids
    • Data & Edge Centers – Supporting low-latency applications with local infrastructure

    National Opportunity:

    • Over 1.4 billion cubic feet/day of gas is flared or vented in the U.S.
      (Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2024)
    • Enough trapped gas exists to power over 10,000 MW of digital infrastructure
      (Source: Digital Wildcatters & Giga Energy)

    States like Texas, North Dakota, New Mexico, and Wyoming are seeing regulatory and ESG-driven momentum to utilize this untapped energy source.

    “We’re positioning AGYP at the center of a new energy economy—where natural gas isn’t wasted but redirected toward powering real-world innovation,” said George Montieth, CEO of AGYP.

    What’s Next for AGYP?

    With Thiel nearing full operational status, AGYP is actively exploring additional partnerships and deployment models to expand its gas-to-power strategy to other high-potential sites. In addition, further updates regarding the company’s carbon capture, gas monetization, and off-grid computing ventures will be provided in the coming months, as previously outlined in AGYP’s February 27, 2025 update.

    AGYP remains committed to turning America’s trapped gas into a strategic energy advantage.

    About AGYP:

    Allied Energy Corp. is an energy development and production company acquiring oil & gas reserves in some of the most prolific hydrocarbon bearing regions of the United States. The Company specializes in the business of reworking & re-completing ‘existing’ oil & gas wells located in the thousands of mature oil & gas producing fields across the United States. The Company applies its knowledge, experience, and effective well-remediation technologies to achieve higher production volumes, longer well life, and more efficient recovery of the proven and available oil and gas reserves in the fields/projects in which it has acquired an ownership interest. The Company will utilize updated technologies such as hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”), drilling of lateral (“horizontal”) legs in productive zones, and utilizing new cased hole electric logging to locate bypassed pays, all to enhance daily rates and oil & gas recoveries. By acquiring interests in a growing number of selected projects in various regions, Allied Energy Corp. is diversifying its exposure and effectively minimizing risk as it pursues corporate growth, top line & bottom-line revenues to the benefit of all stakeholders. There are proven, recoverable reserves contained in the many aging oil & gas fields that have been bypassed by companies moving away from these fields in search of deeper, more plentiful, but more costly reserves. The Company plans to concentrate on bypassed oil and gas as there is less competition and, as mentioned above, the costs are considerably less. Additionally, the company will acquire interests in marginal wells that can be acquired at minimal cost, of which there are 420,000 wells in the U.S. Quoting Barry Russell, President of the Independent Petroleum Association of America (“IPAA”) – “With approximately 20 percent of American oil production and 10 percent of American natural gas production coming from marginal wells, they are America’s true strategic petroleum reserve.”

    Safe Harbor Statement:

    This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements that are within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company has tried, whenever possible, to identify these forward-looking statements using words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “plans,” “intends,” “potential” and similar expressions. These statements reflect the Company’s current beliefs and are based upon information currently available to it. Accordingly, such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause the Company’s actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by such statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or advise in the event of any change, addition or alteration to the information catered in this Press Release, including such forward-looking statements.

    Contact:

    Allied Energy Corporation
    Phone: 972-632-2393
    Email: info@alliedengycorp.com
    X: https://x.com/AlliedEnergyCo1

    Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/805afac9-47b6-422a-a74e-41ed9df311b3

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/bf09204b-baac-49fe-974f-47b7e199e3a5

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/11283726-53b0-48cf-9160-09bcd53a59ec

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2a26cbf3-3990-4f81-8304-8e79d831567a

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Advancements In Drone Technology Opening Up New Applications as Market Size Estimated to Reach $57 Billion by 2028

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    PALM BEACH, Fla., May 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — FN Media Group News Commentary – Drone services are progressively replacing legacy services in the commercial sector, such as aerial surveys, filmography, and search and rescue operations. They offer the advantages of prolonged operation, remote control by human operators, or autonomous functioning by onboard computers. The increasing adoption of drone services across various civil and commercial applications can be attributed to their extended endurance and cost-effectiveness. Furthermore, the integration of advanced technologies like artificial intelligence, IoT (Internet of Things), and cloud computing into drone services is expected to further boost their demand across various sectors. A report from MarketsAndMarkets said that the Global Drone Services Market Size is estimated to reach USD 57.8 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 27.7% during the forecast period. The report continued: “The drone market size continues to expand as the drone services industry evolves, offering a diverse range of services for both remotely controlled and autonomously flown drones. This industry integrates software-controlled flight plans into drones’ embedded systems, making it a critical component in sectors like agriculture, insurance, construction, marine, aviation, oil & gas, mining, and infrastructure. The demand for these services, which includes tasks such as search and rescue, package delivery, industrial inspections, imaging, and healthcare supply distribution to remote areas, significantly contributes to the growing drone market size.”   Active Companies in the drone industry today include ZenaTech, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZENA), Teledyne Technologies Incorporated (NYSE: TDY), ParaZero Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: PRZO), Safe Pro Group Inc. (NASDAQ: SPAI), Unusual Machines, Inc. (NYSE American: UMAC).

    MarketsAndMarkets added: “In terms of market segmentation, drone services are categorized by the type of service provided, including platform services (further divided into flight piloting and operation, data analysis, and data processing), maintenance, repair, and operations (MRO), and simulation and training. The application-based segmentation encompasses inspection and monitoring, mapping and surveying, spraying and seeding, filming and photography, transport and delivery, as well as security, search, and rescue. The industry-based segmentation covers a wide spectrum of sectors, including construction and infrastructure, agriculture, utility, oil & gas, mining, defense and law enforcement, media and entertainment, scientific research, insurance, aviation, marine, healthcare and social assistance, and transportation, logistics, and warehousing. These industries rely heavily on drones for functions like inspection, monitoring, and photography, further driving the drone market size.”

    ZenaTech (NASDAQ:ZENA) ZenaDrone Tests Proprietary Camera Enabling IQ Nano Drone Swarms for US Defense Applications and Blue UAS Submission – ZenaTech, Inc. (FSE: 49Q) (BMV: ZENA) (“ZenaTech”), a technology company specializing in AI (Artificial Intelligence) drones, Drone as a Service (DaaS), enterprise SaaS, and Quantum Computing solutions, announces that its subsidiary ZenaDrone is testing a new proprietary specialized camera that enables more efficient indoor applications such as inventory and security management, when utilizing IQ Nano drone swarms for commercial and US defense applications. The new camera prototype developed by its Taiwan component manufacturing subsidiary, Spider Vision Sensors, in collaboration with its certified electronics manufacturing partner, Suntek Global, will enable faster and more precise collection of data including multiple bar codes simultaneously scanned by multiple drones in a drone swarm. The company plans to apply for Blue UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) certification that lists and validates drones for military and government use.

    “Our Spider Vision Sensors subsidiary in collaboration with Suntek Global, has helped us speed up development of customized and specialized cameras required for our innovative drone swarm applications for commercial and defense customers. This partnership will continue to be invaluable as we develop our NDAA-compliant supply chain and received Blue UAS certification which will allow military and federal agencies to directly purchase our drones.,” said CEO Shaun Passley, Ph.D.

    Military and Defense departments use small autonomous indoor drones like the 10X10 inch IQ Nano for various applications such as inventory management, indoor building reconnaissance, search and rescue, training simulations, and explosives detection. ZenaDrone is also engaged in a paid trial which includes developing drone swarm applications for inventory management and security applications with a multinational auto parts manufacturer customer.

    A drone swarm is a coordinated group of autonomous drones that communicate and work together using AI and real-time data sharing, to perform tasks collaboratively without direct human control. Drone swarms enhance efficiency, accuracy, automation, and performance compared to a single drone. Autonomous drones can rapidly scan thousands of bar codes or RFID tags per second with high accuracy, providing real-time visibility into inventory without disrupting workflows. A drone swarm can also cover more ground simultaneously, dramatically reducing inventory audit times and manual labour while providing near-total inventory visibility.

    An AI drone swarm for indoor security and surveillance enhances coverage, response time, and efficiency by autonomously patrolling large areas, detecting threats, and providing real-time situational awareness. Unlike stationary cameras or human patrols, drone swarms can dynamically adapt to security breaches, track intruders, and coordinate movements to eliminate blind spots. AI-driven analytics enable them to identify anomalies, recognize faces, and detect unauthorized activity with high precision, reducing false alarms and improving security decision-making. Their autonomous nature minimizes human labor costs while ensuring 24/7 monitoring in complex environments like warehouses, data centers, or commercial facilities.

    The ZenaDrone IQ Nano is available in 10×10 and 20×20-inch sizes, designed to perform regular and frequent inspections such as bar code or RFID scanning, facility maintenance inspections, security monitoring, 3D indoor mapping and other applications inside a warehouse, distribution, or plant facility. It is designed for autonomous use featuring integrated sensors, high-quality cameras, data collection and analysis including AI methodologies. Weighing 1.5kg and with a flight time of at least 20 minutes before utilizing the automatic battery recharging station, it is designed for hovering stability and safety with obstacle avoidance capabilities.   Continued… Read this full release by visiting: https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-zena/

    In Additional ZENA News: ZenaTech’s (NASDAQ:ZENA) Expands Ireland Office Offering Drone as a Service (DaaS) Including Precision Agriculture to a European Market Growing at 28.6% Annually – ZenaTech, Inc. (FSE: 49Q) (BMV: ZENA) (“ZenaTech”), a technology company specializing in AI (Artificial Intelligence) drones, Drone as a Service (DaaS), enterprise SaaS, and Quantum Computing solutions, announces it will be expanding operations and opening a new, larger office and its European Headquarters in Dublin, Ireland. The new hub will facilitate the Company’s drone sales and DaaS drone services — including precision agriculture solutions — to a growing UK and European market. The Company anticipates the official grand opening during the summer of 2025.

    Strategically located near Dublin Airport and accessible via all major motorways, the new office location will serve a growing customer base in Ireland and enable growth across Europe, catering to agriculture as well as construction, renewable energy — including wind and solar farms — golf courses, racecourses, and warehouse and logistics.

    “Expanding our Dublin office and establishing a European HQ marks a new chapter in our strategy to scale our drones and DaaS offerings globally while servicing the fastest growing agricultural drone markets located in Europe. Our AI-powered drone solutions are designed to boost crop yields while reducing operational costs and provide smart, data-driven insights — empowering crop monitoring and health assessment, nutrient and resource optimization, and profitability,” said CEO Shaun Passley, Ph.D.

    The European agricultural drone market was valued at approximately USD 4.6 billion in 2023 and is projected to reach USD 43.23 billion by 2032, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 28.58% according to Market Data Forecast . This growth is fueled by the adoption of drones for crop spraying, mapping, pest control, seeding, and remote sensing, which enhance productivity and resource efficiency in farming. Growth is also supported by favorable European government policies and a strong focus on sustainable farming practices.    Continued… Read this full release by visiting: https://www.zenatech.com/newsroom/

    Other recent developments in the drone industry include:

    Teledyne FLIR Defense, part of Teledyne Technologies Incorporated (NYSE: TDY), has recently announced a number of upgrades to its Black Hornet® 4 Personal Reconnaissance System to further boost operational effectiveness for warfighters. The enhanced features are being showcased at the Special Operations Forces (SOF) Week annual conference at the Tampa Convention Center, May 6 to May 8.

    In development over the past year, the series of improvements include a 50% increase in Black Hornet’s radio communications range from two to three kilometers (in optimal conditions). The BH4’s new Android tablet, part of the ground control station, now has up to twice the battery life, plus a battery heater for charging in cold temperatures. The new tablet also features improved ergonomics, making it easier to use while wearing gloves.

    Black Hornet 4 can operate in 25-knot winds and rain, and extensive testing was performed to validate its already rugged endurance capabilities. The drone itself is now IP-52 rated, able to withstand 7.6 mm of rain per hour while in flight, while the ground control station boasts an IP-54 rating.

    Unusual Machines, Inc. (NYSE American: UMAC), a United States based manufacturer and distributor of drone parts recently has successfully closed a confidentially marketed public offering for the sale of 8,000,000 shares of the Company’s Common Stock at the offering price of $5.00 per share (the “Offering”) resulting in gross proceeds of $40 million, before deducting placement agent fees and other offering expenses. The Offering closed on May 7, 2025.

    Allan Evans, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and other members of the Company’s Board of Directors and all members of the Company’s advisory board purchased shares in the Offering on the same terms as the other investors. “We are overwhelmed by the level of support from everyone involved in the process,” said Allan Evans “This raise is absolutely a case of everyone putting their money behind accelerating American manufacturing for drones”.

    ParaZero Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: PRZO), an aerospace company focused on safety systems for commercial unmanned aircrafts and defense Counter UAS systems, recently announced that it has received a new order for dozens of units of its innovative SafeAir™ M4 system. The order was placed by a prominent European drone distributor that serves a wide range of commercial, public safety, and enterprise drone operators across the region.

    The SafeAir™ M4, ParaZero’s next-generation autonomous parachute recovery system, is designed for seamless integration with DJI’s Matrice 4 series. It features a newly developed deployment mechanism with real-time telemetry and is designed and expected to comply with the highest European regulatory standards to enable safe flight in urban areas throughout the EU.

    Safe Pro Group Inc. (NASDAQ: SPAI), a leading provider of artificial intelligence (AI)-driven security solutions, recently announced it has successfully completed multiple demonstrations of its patented Safe Pro Object Threat Detection (SPOTD) technology to various branches of the U.S. Department of Defense. Following these briefings, the Company commenced the integration of its SPOTD technology onto the Win-TAK platform, part of the U.S. Army’s Tactical Assault Kit (TAK) software ecosystem.

    As a result of these successful demonstrations, the Company is accelerating additional development efforts that seek to integrate the Company’s SPOTD technology into the full TAK software ecosystem which includes the U.S. Army’s ATAK (Android Tactical Assault Kit or ATAK) platform. Integration of SPOTD into ATAK is designed to allow detections of small explosive threats instantly identified in drone-based imagery by the Company’s AI technology to be quickly pushed across potentially hundreds of thousands of soldier-carried and vehicle-mounted wireless connected devices widely utilized by the U.S. Armed Forces.

    About FN Media Group:

    At FN Media Group, via our top-rated online news portal at www.financialnewsmedia.com, we are one of the very few select firms providing top tier one syndicated news distribution, targeted ticker tag press releases and stock market news coverage for today’s emerging companies. #tickertagpressreleases #pressreleases

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    DISCLAIMER:  FN Media Group LLC (FNM), which owns and operates FinancialNewsMedia.com and MarketNewsUpdates.com, is a third party publisher and news dissemination service provider, which disseminates electronic information through multiple online media channels. FNM is NOT affiliated in any manner with any company mentioned herein. FNM and its affiliated companies are a news dissemination solutions provider and are NOT a registered broker/dealer/analyst/adviser, holds no investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security. FNM’s market updates, news alerts and corporate profiles are NOT a solicitation or recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities. The material in this release is intended to be strictly informational and is NEVER to be construed or interpreted as research material. All readers are strongly urged to perform research and due diligence on their own and consult a licensed financial professional before considering any level of investing in stocks. All material included herein is republished content and details which were previously disseminated by the companies mentioned in this release. FNM is not liable for any investment decisions by its readers or subscribers. Investors are cautioned that they may lose all or a portion of their investment when investing in stocks. For current services performed FNM has been compensated fifty one hundred dollars for news coverage of the current press releases issued by ZenaTech, Inc. by the Company. FNM HOLDS NO SHARES OF ANY COMPANY NAMED IN THIS RELEASE.

    This release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. “Forward-looking statements” describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as “may,” “future,” “plan” or “planned,” “will” or “should,” “expected,” “anticipates,” “draft,” “eventually” or “projected”. You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, and other risks identified in a company’s annual report on Form 10-K or 10-KSB and other filings made by such company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should consider these factors in evaluating the forward-looking statements included herein, and not place undue reliance on such statements. The forward-looking statements in this release are made as of the date hereof and FNM undertakes no obligation to update such statements.

    Contact Information:

    Media Contact email: editor@financialnewsmedia.com – +1(561)325-8757

    SOURCE: FN Media Group

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: EXL to participate in upcoming investor conferences

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, May 08, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — ExlService Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXLS), a leading data and AI company, today announced Maurizio Nicolelli, executive vice president, chief financial officer, and John Kristoff, vice president, head investor relations, are expected to participate at the following investor conferences:

    • 20th Annual Needham Technology, Media, & Consumer 1×1 Conference, Monday, May 12, 2025, Virtual
    • TD Cowen 53nd Annual Technology, Media & Telecom Conference, Thursday, May 29, 2025, New York, NY, (presentation at 10:50 AM EDT)
    • Baird 2025 Global Consumer, Technology & Services Conference, Thursday, June 5, 2025, New York, NY (presentation at 2:00 PM EDT)
    • Live audio webcasts of company presentations will available on the events page of EXL’s investor website.

    About ExlService Holdings, Inc.
    EXL (NASDAQ: EXLS) is a global data and AI company that offers services and solutions to reinvent client business models, drive better outcomes and unlock growth with speed. EXL harnesses the power of data, AI, and deep industry knowledge to transform businesses, including the world’s leading corporations in industries including insurance, healthcare, banking and capital markets, retail, communications and media, and energy and infrastructure, among others. EXL was founded in 1999 with the core values of innovation, collaboration, excellence, integrity and respect. We are headquartered in New York and have approximately 60,000 employees spanning six continents. For more information, visit www.exlservice.com.

    Contacts:
    Investor Relations
    John Kristoff
    +1 212 209 4613
    ir@exlservice.com 

    Media
    Keith Little
    +1 703 598 0980 
    media.relations@exlservice.com 

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Feenstra Leads Legislation to Help Iowa Farmers Buy Precision Agriculture Equipment

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Randy Feenstra (IA-04)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Reps. Randy Feenstra (R-IA) and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA) introduced the Precision Agriculture Loan Program Act, which would establish the first-ever federal precision agriculture loan program in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency. 

    “In 2022 and 2024, I attended the Farm Progress Show in Boone, Iowa to meet with our farmers, producers, equipment manufacturers, and ag innovators. On both occasions, I was impressed by the cutting-edge advancements in farm technology that help lower input costs for our farmers, increase farm productivity and profitability, and strengthen Iowa’s ability to feed and fuel our country and the world. However, we need to make precision agriculture equipment accessible to producers across our state and around the nation,” said Rep. Feenstra. “That’s why I introduced the Precision Agriculture Loan Program Act to ensure that our producers can secure low-interest loans to invest in precision agriculture tools and make their operations more efficient. This legislation will help our farmers save precious dollars, increase yields, and compete with countries like China on a more level playing field.”

    “Despite the promise of precision agriculture, the high cost of this advanced equipment continues to put it out of reach for too many farmers,” said Rep. Panetta.  “Our bipartisan Precision Agriculture Loan Program Act would provide a practical solution by offering targeted financing to help producers purchase and adopt this technology.  By expanding access to these tools, we can strengthen farm operations, boost sustainability, and enhance our long-term food and climate security.”

    “Access to cutting-edge technology is not a nice-to-have but a must-have for farmers, ranchers, and foresters across the country. Equipment manufacturers applaud U.S. Representatives Randy Feenstra and Jimmy Panetta for championing the first-ever federal precision agriculture loan program in the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency. The Precision Agriculture Loan (PAL) Act will allow more farmers to leverage precision agriculture technologies to remain competitive and operate more efficiently,” said Kip Eideberg, Senior Vice President of Government and Industry Relations at the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM).

    More specifically, this legislation would offer loans up to $500,000 between 3 and 12 years in length at interest rates of less than 2% and create a list of acceptable precision agriculture technologies approved by the Farm Service Agency and covered by the USDA. This funding would also allow farmers to retrofit existing equipment with new technologies.

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: Tower Semiconductor to Attend the 22nd Annual Craig-Hallum Institutional Investor Conference and the 53rd Annual TD Cowen Technology, Media & Telecom Conference

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    MIGDAL HAEMEK, Israel, May 08, 2025 – Tower Semiconductor (NASDAQ/TASE: TSEM), the leading foundry of high-value analog semiconductor solutions, will participate in the 22nd Annual Craig-Hallum Institutional Investor Conference in Minneapolis on Wednesday, May 28 and in the 53rd Annual TD Cowen Technology, Media & Telecom Conference in New York on Thursday, May 29. There will be an opportunity for investors to meet one-on-one with company representatives. Interested investors should contact the conference organizers or email the investor relations team at towersemi@kcsa.com.

    About Tower Semiconductor

    Tower Semiconductor Ltd. (NASDAQ/TASE: TSEM), the leading foundry of high-value analog semiconductor solutions, provides technology, development, and process platforms for its customers in growing markets such as consumer, industrial, automotive, mobile, infrastructure, medical and aerospace and defense. Tower Semiconductor focuses on creating a positive and sustainable impact on the world through long-term partnerships and its advanced and innovative analog technology offering, comprised of a broad range of customizable process platforms such as SiPho, SiGe, BiCMOS, mixed-signal/CMOS, RF CMOS, CMOS image sensor, non-imaging sensors, displays, integrated power management (BCD and 700V), photonics, and MEMS. Tower Semiconductor also provides world-class design enablement for a quick and accurate design cycle as well as process transfer services, including development, transfer, and optimization, to IDMs and fabless companies. To provide multi-fab sourcing and extended capacity for its customers, Tower Semiconductor owns one operating facility in Israel (200mm), two in the U.S. (200mm), two in Japan (200mm and 300mm) which it owns through its 51% holdings in TPSCo, shares a 300mm facility in Agrate, Italy with STMicroelectronics as well as has access to a 300mm capacity corridor in Intel’s New Mexico factory. For more information, please visit: www.towersemi.com.

    Contact Information:
    Liat Avraham
    Investor Relations
    liatavra@towersemi.com | +972 4 650 6154

    David Hanover
    KCSA Strategic Communications

    towersemi@kcsa.com | 212-682-6300

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –