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  • MIL-OSI Canada: New wildlife management area protects more of Great Bear Sea

    Source: Government of Canada regional news

    The Province, in collaboration with partner First Nations, has protected 1,450 hectares of critical ecosystems in the Great Bear Sea.

    “The Great Bear Sea is home to some of the richest ecosystems in the world, and together with First Nations, we’re conserving these important areas that support biodiversity, community well-being and economic prosperity for coastal communities,” said Randene Neill, Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship. “In doing so, we continue our partnership with nature. I thank the Gitga’at First Nation and Gitxaała Nation for their efforts in making co-governance possible.”

    This newest wildlife management area (WMA) covers the north coast’s Kishkosh and Kitkiata inlets, southeast of Prince Rupert. It includes habitat for humpback whales, wild salmon and overwintering and migratory seabirds and shorebirds, as well as eelgrass meadows and kelp beds that help support these key species. The area also includes ecologically and culturally important sites and supports food security for First Nations and coastal communities, as the inlets are also home to groundfish, bivalves, crabs and prawns.

    “The Marine Protected Area Network is designed for and by the people of the coast to protect and conserve these important resources to grow our local economies, enhance culture and biodiversity, and develop the tools to become more self-reliant,” said Christine Smith Martin, CEO, Coastal First Nations-Great Bear Initiative. “Coastal First Nations-Great Bear Initiative is honoured to support its member Nations in the establishment of their marine protected areas. These marine protected areas are integral to advancing a healthy and sustainable future for the coast, including abundant fisheries and healthy marine ecosystems that support the needs of all British Columbians.”

    The WMA advances progress of B.C.’s first Coastal Marine Strategy, released in July 2024, and fulfils a recommendation from the 2023 Marine Protected Area Network Action Plan for the Great Bear Sea. Endorsed by 15 First Nations, Canada and the Province, the action plan recommended conservation objectives for marine protected areas in the Northern Shelf Bioregion and links together efforts to manage biodiverse environments from northern Vancouver Island to the southern Alaska border.

    Next steps for the partner First Nations and the Province include co-developing a management plan for the WMA. Together, they will manage the area collaboratively and work to maintain the conservation objectives for the area, while balancing commercial and public use. Further public and stakeholder engagement is anticipated during the management planning phase. 

    Quotes:

    Tamara Davidson, Minister of Environment and Parks and MLA for North Coast-Haida Gwaii –

    “B.C.’s beautiful coastlines are part of what makes this land so special, and I am blessed to live near one of the most unique, the Great Bear Sea. Through meaningful partnership with the Gitga’at First Nation and Gitxaała Nation, this Wildlife Management Area will chart a path forward for stewardship of these waters, ensuring humpback whales, salmon and numerous other fish and birds can continue to thrive now and into the future.”

    Christine Boyle, Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation –

    “This partnership is helping to protect marine ecosystems, cultural sites and food security in the vital Great Bear Sea region. Together with the Gitga’at First Nation and Gitxaała Nations who have stewarded these areas since time immemorial, we are collaboratively working to ensure the rich ecological and cultural legacies of these important areas remain for future generations.”  

    Quick Facts:

    • Conservation and management of fish, wildlife and their habitats are the priority in a WMA management plan, which may also support limited or modified resource-based activities if compatible with conservation objectives.
    • Public and stakeholder engagement in the planning phase of the Marine Protected Area Network Action Plan included direct input from representatives of 17 sectors, including coastal forestry, commercial tourism, aquaculture, and local government and members of the public, from 2015-22.
    • The designation of this WMA does not affect any existing approvals or authorizations.

    Learn More:

    To learn more about the work of Coastal First Nations, visit:
    https://coastalfirstnations.ca

    To read about the importance of wildlife management areas, visit: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/environment/plants-animals-ecosystems/wildlife/wildlife-habitats/conservation-lands/wma

    To find out about Marine Protected Area Network partners’ plan to protect British Columbia’s North Coast, visit: https://news.gov.bc.ca/stories/marine-protected-area-network-partners-endorse-plan-to-protect-british-columbias-north-coast

    To get a summary of MPA Network Action Plan, visit: https://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/oceans/publications/nsb-mpan-ramp-bpn/index-eng.html

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Support for the Canadian Steel Sector

    Source: Government of Canada News

    This move comes in response to both U.S. tariffs on steel and global steel overproduction, which are pushing foreign exporters to find new places to sell their steel—including Canada. Strengthening these import limits will help prevent the Canadian market from being overwhelmed with cheap steel, while still making sure Canadian businesses that rely on steel can continue to get the supply they need.

    Canada is among the countries most affected by global steel tariffs. It is one of the world’s largest per capita importers of steel. Canadian steel producers are highly trade exposed, exporting just over 50 per cent of their annual production in 2024, during which over 90 per cent went to the U.S. Our steel industry is a cornerstone of the national economy—critical to building infrastructure, supporting advanced manufacturing, and securing our future prosperity. Canada is proud of our highly skilled steelworkers and the strong, resilient industry they power. However, rising trade pressures and market disruptions demand a clear and proactive response. The government is taking decisive steps to protect, stabilize, and pivot our steel sector. Canada needs steel to build Canada strong – homes, bridges, transit, and the clean economy of tomorrow—and the government is committed to ensuring our industry is ready to meet that demand.

    Tariff rate quotas

    Tariff rate quotas (TRQs) allow a certain amount of steel to come in at a reduced tariff or tariff-free. After that limit is reached, higher tariffs apply. The government is strengthening the TRQs for steel products implemented on June 27, 2025.

    This move comes in response to both U.S. tariffs on steel and global steel overproduction, which are pushing foreign exporters to find new places to sell their steel—including Canada. Strengthening these import limits will help prevent the Canadian market from being overwhelmed with cheap steel, while still making sure Canadian businesses that rely on steel can continue to get the supply they need.

    • Effective August 1, 2025, the TRQs will be extended to countries that have a free trade agreement in force with Canada, with the exception of the United States and Mexico. This will result in a 50 per cent surtax being applied on steel imports above 100 per cent of 2024 levels.
    • For those countries that do not have a free trade agreement with Canada, the quota for tariff-free imports will be reduced to 50 per cent of 2024 levels. A 50 per cent surtax will be applied on steel imports exceeding this threshold.
    • The government will consult with industry to finalize adjustments to other design elements of the tariff rate quotas.

    Melt and Pour Tariffs

    A 25 per cent surtax will also be applied on imports from all countries other than the U.S. that contain steel melted and poured in China. This will increase transparency in the domestic supply chains and help prevent circumvention of Canada’s trade measures. The product scope of the surtax would align with the existing China Surtax Order on steel. This measure will be implemented before the end of July.

    Strategic Innovation Fund

    The government will provide up to $1 billion to the Strategic Innovation Fund to support the steel industry’s transition toward new lines of business and to strengthen domestic supply chains. This investment will help the sector pivot to emerging opportunities, modernize production capabilities, and better serve the Canadian market. By fostering innovation and adaptability, this funding will build a more resilient, competitive, and sustainable steel industry for the future. Funding will be provided to support the competitiveness of Canada’s steel companies by:

    • Enhancing competitiveness of domestic steel companies to serve the domestic market;
    • Supporting the production of steel products not currently produced in Canada;
    • Supporting the production of steel products needed by strategic sectors such as defence; and,
    • Anchoring the presence of steel companies that are, or would become, commercially viable in a sustained tariff environment.

    Labour Market Development Agreements

    The government is investing $70 million over three years for steel workers via Labour Market Development Agreements with provinces and territories.

    • Supports will be developed in partnership with workers, employers and provinces and territories to retrain and upskill up to 10,000 steel workers.
    • Funding will support access to targeted training, reskilling financial-related supports, and job retention programs to ensure workers can continue contributing to a resilient and competitive steel sector and in-demand jobs.
    • These measures will benefit mid-career, long-tenured steel workers affected by U.S. tariffs and global market shifts.

    Regional Tariff Response Initiative

    In March 2025, the Government of Canada announced funding to Canada’s regional development agencies so they could better support businesses impacted by U.S. tariffs. Up to $150 million of the $450 million Regional Tariff Response Initiative (RTRI) will be targeted to SME projects in the steel sector. The RTRI will be launched very shortly and more details will be available for potential applicants at that time.

    Large Enterprise Tariff Loan Facility

    In March 2025, the government announced the creation of Large Enterprise Tariff Loan (LETL), a new $10 billion financing facility to support Canadian companies affected by actual or potential tariffs and countermeasures.

    The Large Enterprise Tariff Loan facility terms will be revised to enable the Canada Enterprise Emergency Funding Corporation to provide targeted support the steel industry. These changes include:

    • Reducing the proposed initial interest rate from CORRA + 400 basis points to CORRA + 200 basis points
    • Reducing the minimum annual revenue criterion from $300 million to $150 million,
    • Reducing the minimum loan size criterion from $60 million to $30 million,
    • Extending the loan maturity from 5 years to 7 years,
    • Enabling the Canada Enterprise Emergency Funding Corporation to hold equity in companies,
    • Requiring companies prioritize worker retention.

    Procurement

    Through changes to federal procurement processes, companies contracting with the government will be required, where possible, to source steel from Canadian companies. Companies will only be granted a Ministerial exemption if they attest in writing that no Canadian steel producer could or wants to produce the steel required. Alternatively, companies will be required to provide proof that the requirement would raise the cost to unstainable levels or delay critical equipment required by the Government for defence, national security or other key sectors.

    Pivot to Grow

    Launched in winter 2025, Pivot to Grow is a $500 million fund administered by the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) and seeks to help small and medium-sized enterprises transition to new markets and increase productivity.

    The BDC will provide more flexible repayment terms through its Pivot to Grow fund, with the financing to provide liquidity support to eligible steel Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) facing liquidity concerns. Further details will be available from BDC shortly.

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Governor Hochul is a Guest on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”

    Source: US State of New York

    arlier today, Governor Hochul was a Guest on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

    AUDIO: The Governor’s remarks are available in audio form here.

    A rush transcript of the Governor’s remarks is available below:

    Willie Geist, MSNBC: Joining us now here in Studio New York’s Democratic Governor, Kathy Hochul. Governor, great to see you as always.

    Governor Hochul: Thank you. Thank you.

    Willie Geist, MSNBC: A lot to talk to you about. Let’s talk, first, about the mayoral race that we’ve been discussing already this morning. Zohran Mamdani is leading the polls right now, but former Governor Andrew Cuomo says “I’m staying in.” You’ve got the current mayor Eric Adams in the race as well. We were talking as you sat down, you said, “It is my job to make it work whoever the mayor of New York City is, I can work with whoever wins this race.”

    Governor Hochul: That is a true statement. I have no choice, and what people fail to realize — what they will next year perhaps — is that the Governor has enormous power over all of our cities. And, for example, a couple days ago I had to sign legislation to allow the City of New York to put cameras in speed zones near schools. Now, one would think that’s something the local government handles, but the way it’s been structured since the 1970s when a lot of power was given because of the meltdown, the fiscal crisis here — Albany has extraordinary power over the city.

    I can work with whomever the voters want me to work with. I will never harm the City of New York. I won’t hold money hostage and make people suffer as has been practiced in the past. But people have to understand that I’m going to make sure that we have a climate where businesses can thrive. They create jobs, they give us the revenues I need to be able to have very generous social safety net programs. We’ll keep it all together, but this is going to be an election for the ages. A little unprecedented to have all the attention in November. It’s usually settled in June so we’ll be watching closely.

    Willie Geist, MSNBC: Mamdani met with a group of business leaders here in New York yesterday, expressed some of their concerns about his policy proposals, that he’s a democratic socialist, that he might not have the best interest of New York City’s business community in mind. Do you share any of those concerns?

    Governor Hochul: I actually raised many of those concerns with him directly. I said, “You have a lot of healing to do with the Jewish community. Many of your words have been hurtful and hateful to people in their interpretation of it.” So job number one is to straighten that relationship out if you can, and to get them to understand that if you become the mayor, we don’t know the outcome, but if you become the mayor, that you’ll be a mayor for everyone.” And no one should have to worry about being in the city and feeling less safe because of who the mayor is and their religious beliefs. So that was important. I raised that concern.

    The other one is the business community. Now, everyone that was having a hair on fire moment, and I said, “Let’s just calm it all down.” I’ve spoken to hundreds of business leaders saying, “Listen, nothing is going to happen to this city without me being aware of it and involved in it. So don’t talk about packing up and leaving.” — and all these other, overreactions, we’re going to be okay no matter what happens.

    And so I’ve had to do a lot of — I’ve become the therapist in chief it seems. I’m saying to everybody, “We’re going to be okay.” Maybe it’s the mom in me, I know how to calm down situations and we’ll get through this. Don’t panic, everybody. Let the process play out. Let the voters decide and then we’ll deal with it. But I did raise those same concerns, and they need to be addressed.

    Reverend Al Sharpton: Governor, we’ve seen some of this before with Bill de Blasio. People said he was a socialist. He never said himself that he was, but they said it. He was elected and reelected. But does it concern you that not only dealing with the questions about Mamdani, who I think has addressed some of these concerns and still evolving, that his opponents come with baggage?

    We’re almost forgetting that, you have the former Governor who has a lot of concerns and you have the Mayor who people are concerned about his relationship with President Trump. So there’s baggage there that you’ve got to balance.

    And the second part is that they’re going to try and demonize whoever is the elected mayor because they’re really trying to get their guns loaded to come after you and Attorney General Tish James next year. And isn’t a lot of this trying to be over the top with Mamdani and others to try and act like the whole Democratic Party, and therefore Kathy Hochul and Tish James shouldn’t be elected next year. Isn’t a lot of that a concern, or should that be a concern of yours?

    Governor Hochul: I don’t worry about those things. That is down the road. I suspect there are people conspiring against me for next year. Whether it’s Republicans — it goes with the turf. I can handle this. It’s my 16th election. I know how to do this. And I always say bring it on. Bring it on.

    But my point is also that, as you mentioned about Bill de Blasio, he did freeze the rent three times himself. That’s it’s not something brand new and radical to do that. People are suffering in this city, and I think Mamdani tapped into something that is real and visceral like I’m not getting ahead. I’m working hard. I’m doing the best I can and I’m not living the American Dream and everything is so expensive. So, I am aligned with the issue of raising people’s living, income, making sure that people have houses. That’s the most expensive cost for any family is their rent bill and the utility bills associated with that.

    So, I’m aggressively trying to build more housing. I want partners who will do that with me and break down all the barriers of people who just say, “Not in my backyard.” I’m sorry, you want to live in a big city –- there are going to people in your backyard. And we have to be more expansive in this.

    And what I’ve done is put $5,000 back in families’ pockets with my Budget. So, trying to offset some of this feeling of anxiety that people aren’t listening to me. So, we’re doing what we can, but then again, we have to deal with everything going up because of the tariffs. Let’s talk about that. We have inflation that drove up the cost of everything. Families can’t get their head above water. And now we have the Trump tariff taxes — raising the cost of everything, a pair of sneakers for a child this fall, and their mom’s going to have to pony up more than 44 percent more than last year to buy a pair of sneakers. This is hard on families. I’m focused on this. Affordability is not something that I just woke up to. It’s something I’ve been fighting for years and we’re making a real difference for people, but they just feel like they’re not getting ahead and I understand that.

    Jonathan Lemire, MSNBC: Governor, you mentioned President Trump’s tariff policy. Let’s also turn to the one “Big Beautiful Bill.” Now, law of the land, and talk to us about the way the budget cuts are going to impact New York State particularly, and people think of New York State as New York City, but as we well know it, it extends far beyond that.

    There are a lot of rural areas and I know there’s real concern about both Medicaid and rural health care.

    Governor Hochul: Absolutely. I was just up in Elise Stefanik’s district in the North Country, which is getting hammered, first of all the tariffs because the Canadians are not coming over. They’re not spending money in the hotels and restaurants. The tourism economy is suffering. Then you have the farm community, the farmers, Republican farmers, don’t know why their own elected officials voted against their interests with higher costs because of tariffs, closing out markets to them that they had always counted on the cost of even steel or the shavings that go in the stalls for their cows is more expensive because they got it from Canada. So, you have all that. But then to tell them that you are at risk of losing five of your rural hospitals in this one congressional district. That is real. I had a forum up there. I had 400 people — standing room only. Farmers, people in tourism, the small businesses, people in health care hospitals, they’re in a panic.

    And this is what I want to point out all across the state, seven members of the Republican party elected in this state voted against the interest of their own constituents. How do you do that and think you’re going to get away with it? Oh, you’ll push back the pain until 2027. Guess what? We’re going to remind everybody what you did to them, and it’s going to have an effect on your 2026 election, and that’s how Hakeem Jeffries will become the next Speaker to try and undo the pain that you’re talking about.

    We’ll lose 67,000 health care jobs, $8 billion hit to our hospitals and health care providers. The State of New York will have enormous challenges heading into next year, and in fact, this year we have to make up $750 million that they just took away this year alone. So, we’re fighting back, but it’d be really nice if we had some, I’m not even asking for real profiles and courage. Just don’t vote against your own constituents. It’s that simple.

    Willie Geist, MSNBC: So, Governor, when five rural hospitals close in a single district, and you’re talking about losing almost a billion dollars in funding for that kind of thing, what do you do? What does the State of New York do? What does a county do? How do you make up for the fact that this is where my doctor is? Now that hospital’s closed, I’ve got to drive far, my Medicaid reimbursements aren’t coming in. How do you as a state try to bridge that gap?

    Governor Hochul: We’re looking at that right now, and it is a shame that – what Washington has done – Republicans in Washington have done will now have an impact on our ability to provide services here in the State of New York. We already spend an enormous amount of money taking care of people’s health care and education and childcare and nutrition programs, but we count on the federal government to be a partner in this, and when they pull out their share going to cost us so much more to do this. There’s not a state in this nation that can completely backfill all the cuts that they have now unleashed on us. It is not possible. So, we’ll have to figure it out with my team. I’m getting together with my cabinet this week. We have to make up $750 million right now. I’m saying, “Go back to your agencies, find some cuts, find out what we can save some money.” Next year, I have a $3 billion cut. We’ll get together with the Legislature, try to work it out, but this is grotesquely unfair, not just to the states, but to the people we serve. And they need to wear this. So this is gonna be a drumbeat. We’re not stopping because it didn’t have to be this way. You actually can vote against what your president tells you sometimes. It might be politically smart for you in a place like New York but they didn’t do that. I lost my seat in Congress, representing the most rural district, the most Republican district in New York, because I refused to vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act. I knew those people in those rural areas that I represented myself would suffer from this, even though they threw me out of office because I stood up for them. But every once in a while you have to do the right thing — and they had the opportunity and they blew it.

    Willie Geist, MSNBC: They blew it and it’s devastating to a lot of people. I want to ask you finally governor about something that’s exciting to a lot of parents that’s about to happen this fall. This school year which is a statewide ban in New York public schools on cell phones for kids. This has been an issue that parents and kids and schools and politicians have debated. You got the state to this place of, we’re talking bell to bell, you say, right? You check it in the morning, you get it back at the end of the day. How hard was it to get this over the line and how exactly will it work?

    Governor Hochul: It was very difficult. It took a year of me doing round tables with parents and students and administrators and superintendents, and there was a sense of Albany can’t tell us what to do. Then I said, “Then do it yourself. You know it’s better for the kids, superintendent and school boards. Do it yourselves.” Well, the parents will be upset. So, I said, “Listen, I’ll be the heavy. I’m a mom. I’m used to taking the blame, right? So let me wear this. Let’s do it, and let’s get this done as soon as possible, starting this fall.” So, all I want to do is give our kids their freedom back, not being addicted to this device all day long. They’re watching TikTok dance videos instead of listening to the math teacher

    And it’s affecting their academic performance, but also they’re not developing into fully functioning adults emerging as 18 year olds anymore because they’re not used to communicating. They don’t make eye contact; they don’t talk to each other. So this is going to change the quality of life for our kids — and hopefully help their mental health because we have a severe mental health crisis right now with teenagers. I can’t tell you how many days a week I hear from a parent who says, “my child is so depressed, they’re contemplating suicide. I’m so glad you’re taking the cell phones out of their hand because that’s where it started.” So I think other states should do this. It takes guts, you have to stand up, but I will do anything to protect your kids as if they’re my own.

    Willie Geist, MSNBC: And one of the arguments against it is safety. If there’s a school shooting, then the kids need to be able to call their parents or call 911 or whatever it is, or if there’s some other emergency in the school — but you heard something interesting from law enforcement on that.

    Governor Hochul: This is what changed my perspective completely and I’m a mom who sent her kids to school during Columbine — and that fear of what happens when you send your child off to school and something horrific happens. We’ve had so many school shootings, but when law enforcement told me that if there is an active shooter in the building, the last thing you want is for your child to have their cell phone.

    First of all, it rings, they’re identified, or they start videoing or sending text messages, and they’re not paying attention to the trained professional in the front of the room – their teacher, their teachers go through constant drills. So sheriffs and police officers and district attorneys worked with me to try and persuade the parents.

    As hard as it is to give that connection up with your child, it is better for them in a crisis like that. So that’s what we need to lean into and say your child is safer not having the phone, and they’ll be more well adjusted. They’ll be happier, they’ll have more friends in person. One young girl told me, I said, “why can’t you just put it down?” She said, “You have to save us from ourselves. We can’t put this down. We need you to do it.” That’s all I needed to hear. And we got it done.

    Willie Geist, MSNBC: And so is it in the morning, it goes into a Ziploc bag or what? How does it work?

    Governor Hochul: Every school can do it their own way — I’ll be in the Bronx today with the school superintendent, and they’re going to have these pouches called yonder pouches. They zip them up all day. Any school can do it the way they want. If you want to have a rack in the back of the classroom, but they cannot have it on them because the temptation is too great. When they get 250 notifications a day — kids do. We tracked this last year, we had a really strict nation leading ban on addictive algorithms from social media companies going after our kids. That was a big step last year, and I encourage the federal government to take a look at this. We’ve got to save our kids. They’re crying for help. We’re the adults, it’s our job.

    Willie Geist, MSNBC: I think a lot of people around the country will be watching New York to see how this goes, and I think a lot of parents are grateful that you took that step.

    New York State’s Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul, Governor thank you as always.

    Governor Hochul: Thank you. Great to see all of you

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: $2 Million State Grant Helps Charlotte Land the 2026 Major League Soccer All-Star Game

    Source: US State of North Carolina

    Headline: $2 Million State Grant Helps Charlotte Land the 2026 Major League Soccer All-Star Game

    $2 Million State Grant Helps Charlotte Land the 2026 Major League Soccer All-Star Game
    lsaito

    Raleigh, NC

    Today in partnership with Major League Soccer and the North Carolina Department of Commerce, Governor Stein announced that Charlotte will host the 2026 Major League Soccer All-Star Game. This announcement was made possible by a new fund authorized by the legislature and offered by the Department of Commerce – the Major Events, Games, and Attractions Fund. A grant of $2,028,950 will support the Charlotte Sports Foundation and other local partners as they host this major sporting event next year.

    “I am proud that North Carolina has been chosen to host the 2026 Major League Soccer All-Star Game,” said Governor Josh Stein. “Our state’s new Major Events Fund puts us in a stronger position to compete for these highly visible, top-tier events that draw people and their resources to our state. Visitors to Charlotte will see that North Carolina is a great place to live, work, and play.”  

    “Bringing the MLS All Star Game to Charlotte will showcase the talent of one of the most dynamic and fast-growing sports leagues,” said Commerce Secretary Lee Lilley. “The selection process for major events like this are very competitive, and we appreciate the General Assembly providing another tool to help the state to win more of these national-level events and attractions.”

    In addition to supporting Charlotte’s bid for the 2026 Major League Soccer All-Star Game, earlier in the year the Major Events, Games, and Attractions Fund provided a $2 million grant to the City of Winston-Salem in support of the NASCAR Clash race held February 2 at Bowman Gray Stadium. The fund also provided a $1.65 million grant to Richmond County in support of the NASCAR Xfinity, ARCA, and Truck series races held at the Rockingham Speedway in April.

    The Commerce Department’s Major Events, Games, and Attractions Fund was created as part of a law passed in 2023 that established sports betting in the state (Session Law 2023-42/House Bill 347). Wager activities are subject to a state tax, with 30 percent of the annual revenues from these taxes earmarked to support the Major Events Fund. Local governments and locally authorized organizing committees apply for grants from the fund, which then reimburses qualified expenses incurred in both securing and executing a major event.

    More information on the Major Events, Games, and Attractions Fund can be found here.  

    Jul 16, 2025

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: USDC Meets AI Mining, PFMCrypto Launches Smart Cloud Mining with Daily USDC Payouts

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    New York, NY, July 16, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — As the USDC ecosystem gains global momentum, PFMCrypto proudly introduces a groundbreaking advancement in decentralized finance: USDC-based smart cloud mining contracts. Now available via both web and mobile platforms, these flexible short-term contracts allow users to mine USDC remotely—with no equipment, no setup, and no technical expertise required. For the first time, everyday users can actively engage in the USDC economy through a seamless, fully integrated platform.

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    4. Multi-Asset Flexibility – Mine USDC or diversify earnings into BTC, ETH, and other leading cryptos.
    5. Anywhere Access – Secure, remote mining from your phone or desktop—whenever, wherever.

    Start in 3 Simple Steps:
    1. Sign Up – Create your account and get a $10 welcome bonus
    2. Choose a Contract – Pick from short or long-term options (1 to 60 days)
    3. Start Earning – Monitor your daily returns and withdraw in your preferred crypto

    Start mining USDC now at: https://pfmcrypto.net 
    Or download the PFMCrypto mobile app for iOS and Android.

    Mining XRP for a Smarter Digital Future:
    Since 2018, PFMCrypto has helped millions of users around the world generate passive crypto income through secure, AI-powered, cloud-based mining systems. Now, with the introduction of USDC mining, the platform combines institutional-grade infrastructure with retail accessibility, giving everyone the opportunity to earn stable, daily income in a trusted digital dollar.
    “USDC is stable, trusted, and globally adopted,” said a PFMCrypto spokesperson. “Now it’s mineable—securely, remotely, and profitably. We’ve removed the barriers so anyone can participate in the future of decentralized finance.”
    Markets may fluctuate—but your daily mining income doesn’t have to.

    Join the USDC mining revolution today at: https://pfmcrypto.net

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: CloudBees announces the availability of the CloudBees MCP Server, the latest innovation behind CloudBees Unify, in the new AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools category

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SAN FRANCISCO, July 16, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — CloudBees, one of the world’s leading software delivery platforms for enterprise DevOps, today announced the availability of the CloudBees Modern Context Protocol (MCP) Server, the latest innovation behind CloudBees Unify, in the new AI Agents and Tools category of AWS Marketplace. Customers can now use AWS Marketplace to easily discover, buy, and deploy AI agent solutions, including CloudBees’ MCP server, using their AWS accounts, accelerating AI agent and agentic workflow development.

    The CloudBees MCP server is the core service that acts as the connecting layer between CloudBees Unify and large language models like Claude and GPT, as well as popular development tools and IDEs. The MCP server provides real-time access to CI/CD pipeline, testing, and security data from Unify, allowing teams to trigger workflows, prototype faster, and collaborate across environments, without the need to interact directly with CloudBees Unify’s APIs.

    With built-in support for flexible, ad-hoc integrations, teams can easily route contextual insights like build summaries or deployment alerts, into collaboration tools like Slack or PagerDuty. By standardizing governance and security across AI-powered interactions and without replacing existing systems, MCP server helps organizations scale software delivery with control and speed demanded by today’s enterprise environments.

    Through an integration with Amazon Q, customers no longer need separate AI agents for infrastructure management and DevOps. Developers can now directly connect to the CloudBees MCP server using Amazon Q, managing both infrastructure and software delivery from a single interface, accelerating setup and reducing overhead. And because CloudBees MCP works seamlessly with CloudBees Unify, organizations gain shared access, stronger governance, and faster time to value.

    “By offering the CloudBees MCP Server in AWS Marketplace, we’re providing customers with a streamlined way to access our Unify solution, helping them deploy AI agent solutions faster and more efficiently,” said Anuj Kapur, CEO at CloudBees. “Our customers in the Global 2000 and enterprise landscape are already using these capabilities to accelerate software delivery and reduce developer toil, demonstrating the real-world value of agentic DevOps. As we continue to expand our product offerings available in AWS Marketplace and integrations with AWS, the cloud is becoming a key pillar in how we deliver value to our customers at enterprise scale.”

    With the availability of AI Agents and Tools in AWS Marketplace, organizations can significantly accelerate their procurement process to drive AI innovation, reducing the time needed for vendor evaluations and complex negotiations. With centralized purchasing using AWS accounts, customers maintain visibility and control over licensing, payments, and access through AWS. This enables innovation with less friction, empowering enterprises to explore agentic software delivery at scale.

    To learn more about the CloudBees MCP server in AWS Marketplace, visit https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/pp/prodview-toijail7yqoay. To learn more about the new AI Agents and Tools category in AWS Marketplace, visit https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/solutions/ai-agents-and-tools/.

    About CloudBees

    CloudBees is a leading DevOps solution for enterprises navigating the complexity of modernizing software development at scale. Built for global enterprises, CloudBees bridges the gap between legacy systems and emerging technologies, helping organizations innovate securely, intelligently, and on their own terms.

    As the industry’s most open and flexible DevOps solution, CloudBees integrates with any developer tool, allowing teams to build better, faster, and safer across any environment. CloudBees automates and optimizes software delivery at scale with continuous compliance and enterprise-grade governance built-in, accelerated with AI capabilities.

    Founded in 2010, CloudBees is backed by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Bridgepoint Capital, HSBC, Golub Capital, Delta-v Capital, Matrix Partners, and Lightspeed Venture Partners.

    Visit us at www.cloudbees.com.

    Contact:
    Lauren Lewis
    SutherlandGold for CloudBees
    cloudbees@sutherlandgold.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: ARTICUL8 announces availability of LLM-IQ Evaluator and Network Topology Agents in the new AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools category

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SANTA CLARA, Calif., July 16, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — ARTICUL8, a leading domain specific enterprise Generative AI (GenAI) company, today announced the availability of LLM-IQ™ Agent, a domain-specific automated LLM evaluation and reasoning application and Network Topology Agent, an intelligence service transforming data logs and graphs into a live queryable graph, in the new AI Agents and Tools category of AWS Marketplace. This enables AWS customers to easily discover, buy, and deploy Articul8’s GenAI Agents using their AWS accounts, accelerating AI agent and agentic workflow development.

    Articul8 helps organizations harness messy, unstructured enterprise data with speed at scale on a ready-to-use secure, cost-efficient AI platform to build expert-level Generative AI Applications, enabling customers to address their most difficult, mission-critical challenges.

    “We’re excited to offer LLM-IQ Agent and Network Topology Agent in AWS Marketplace AI,” said Arun Subramaniyan, CEO at Articul8 AI. “The new AI Agents and tools category in AWS Marketplace allows us to provide customers with a streamlined way to access our intelligent AI agents helping them apply advanced reasoning to select the right LLMs for each task, automate infrastructure validation and discovery, and deliver dynamic, real-time insights into network structure and behavior.”

    Articul8’s LLM-IQ™ Agent enables no-code evaluation of top open- and closed-source LLMs, including GPT-4, Claude 3, Gemini, and Llama 4. Enterprise teams can assess model performance across more than 25 real-world tasks using natural language while streamlining model selection with built-in benchmarking and compliance metrics.

    Its Network Topology Agent delivers topology intelligence as a service—transforming static logs and diagrams into a live, queryable graph for real-time visibility and change detection across clouds, data centers, and distributed environments.

    Through the availability of AI Agents and Tools in AWS Marketplace, customers can significantly accelerate their procurement process to drive AI innovation, reducing the time needed for vendor evaluations and complex negotiations. With centralized purchasing using AWS accounts, customers maintain visibility and control over licensing, payments, and access through AWS.

    About Articul8 AI: Articul8 AI is a technology company whose products transform enterprise data and expertise into powerful engines of growth, value and impact. Our full-stack GenAI platform is revolutionizing how enterprises harness their data and expertise to build expert-level Generative AI applications for their mission-critical challenges. Our products deliver enterprise-scale impact with ROI in hours to weeks. General-purpose GenAI models, while necessary, are not sufficient to deliver enterprise-specific decisioning and actioning. Our platform addresses this gap by making it straightforward for companies to build sophisticated, enterprise-scale and expert-level GenAI applications that encode their domain expertise. Our proprietary technology does the heavy lifting through autonomous decisions and actions, automated data intelligence, improved precision and relevance with industry knowledge encoded into Articul8’s library of domain and task-specific models. We are purpose-built for regulated industries and meet the highest standards of compliance, data security, privacy and performance, including traceability and auditability at every step. We are trusted by leading global enterprises such as Franklin Templeton, Intel, Itochu Techno-Solutions Corporation, AWS, Intel and Accenture to transform their mission-critical work.

    Media Contact
    Alan Auyeung
    (530) 219-7942
    Alan.Auyeung@articul8.ai

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: ASAPP’s GenerativeAgent Platform is Now Available in the New AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools Storefront

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, July 16, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — ASAPP, the leading provider of AI-powered contact center software, today announced the availability of its GenerativeAgent Platform in the new AI Agents and Tools storefront in AWS Marketplace. This enables AWS customers to easily discover, buy, and deploy GenerativeAgent using their AWS accounts, accelerating AI agent and agentic workflow development.

    The AI Agents and Tools storefront in AWS Marketplace serves as a centralized catalog for hundreds of AI solutions from trusted AWS Partners. GenerativeAgent is built from the ground up to redefine the role of AI in the contact center by enabling users to handle complex, multi-turn conversations with enterprise-grade performance, safety, and control. By successfully handling nuanced conversations and multi-step problem-solving to resolve customer issues on its own, the platform dramatically increases contact center capacity, improving the customer service experience and lowering the cost to serve.

    “ASAPP is committed to delivering best-in-class AI products that solve the toughest challenges in customer service, and it is a privilege to offer our GenerativeAgent platform in the new AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools storefront,” said Priya Vijayarajendran, CEO of ASAPP. “We are proud to expand our collaboration with AWS as we equip more customers with the tools to transform their customer experience strategy and gain more value from their AI investments.”

    Through the AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools storefront, customers can significantly accelerate their procurement process to drive AI innovation, reducing the time needed for vendor evaluations and complex negotiations. With centralized purchasing using AWS accounts, customers maintain visibility and control over licensing, payments, and access through AWS.

    This news follows ASAPP’s achievement of the AWS Generative AI Competency in April 2025, a recognition of AWS partners that drive the advancement of services, tools, data strategy, and infrastructure pivotal for implementing generative AI technologies across diverse industries.

    To learn more about ASAPP in AWS Marketplace, click here. To learn more about the new AI Agents and Tools storefront in AWS Marketplace, click here

    Helpful links

    About ASAPP
    ASAPP is an artificial intelligence solution provider committed to solving the toughest problems in customer service. Our flagship product, GenerativeAgent®, is a platform built from the ground up to handle complex, multi-turn conversations with enterprise-grade performance, safety, and control. Because we automate what was previously impossible to automate, our AI-native® solutions deliver more than efficiency gains. They redefine the role of AI in the contact center and lay the groundwork for businesses to reimagine their customer experience delivery for the age of AI. Leading enterprises rely on ASAPP’s generative and agentic AI solutions to dramatically expand contact center capacity and transform their contact centers from cost centers into value drivers. To learn more about ASAPP, visit www.asapp.com.

    Media Contact
    Amy McDowell
    Offleash PR for ASAPP
    asapp@offleashpr.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: ASAPP’s GenerativeAgent Platform is Now Available in the New AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools Storefront

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    NEW YORK, July 16, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — ASAPP, the leading provider of AI-powered contact center software, today announced the availability of its GenerativeAgent Platform in the new AI Agents and Tools storefront in AWS Marketplace. This enables AWS customers to easily discover, buy, and deploy GenerativeAgent using their AWS accounts, accelerating AI agent and agentic workflow development.

    The AI Agents and Tools storefront in AWS Marketplace serves as a centralized catalog for hundreds of AI solutions from trusted AWS Partners. GenerativeAgent is built from the ground up to redefine the role of AI in the contact center by enabling users to handle complex, multi-turn conversations with enterprise-grade performance, safety, and control. By successfully handling nuanced conversations and multi-step problem-solving to resolve customer issues on its own, the platform dramatically increases contact center capacity, improving the customer service experience and lowering the cost to serve.

    “ASAPP is committed to delivering best-in-class AI products that solve the toughest challenges in customer service, and it is a privilege to offer our GenerativeAgent platform in the new AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools storefront,” said Priya Vijayarajendran, CEO of ASAPP. “We are proud to expand our collaboration with AWS as we equip more customers with the tools to transform their customer experience strategy and gain more value from their AI investments.”

    Through the AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools storefront, customers can significantly accelerate their procurement process to drive AI innovation, reducing the time needed for vendor evaluations and complex negotiations. With centralized purchasing using AWS accounts, customers maintain visibility and control over licensing, payments, and access through AWS.

    This news follows ASAPP’s achievement of the AWS Generative AI Competency in April 2025, a recognition of AWS partners that drive the advancement of services, tools, data strategy, and infrastructure pivotal for implementing generative AI technologies across diverse industries.

    To learn more about ASAPP in AWS Marketplace, click here. To learn more about the new AI Agents and Tools storefront in AWS Marketplace, click here

    Helpful links

    About ASAPP
    ASAPP is an artificial intelligence solution provider committed to solving the toughest problems in customer service. Our flagship product, GenerativeAgent®, is a platform built from the ground up to handle complex, multi-turn conversations with enterprise-grade performance, safety, and control. Because we automate what was previously impossible to automate, our AI-native® solutions deliver more than efficiency gains. They redefine the role of AI in the contact center and lay the groundwork for businesses to reimagine their customer experience delivery for the age of AI. Leading enterprises rely on ASAPP’s generative and agentic AI solutions to dramatically expand contact center capacity and transform their contact centers from cost centers into value drivers. To learn more about ASAPP, visit www.asapp.com.

    Media Contact
    Amy McDowell
    Offleash PR for ASAPP
    asapp@offleashpr.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Atos announces availability of Atos Polaris AI Platform in the new AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools category

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Press Release

    Atos announces availability of Atos Polaris AI Platform in the new AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools category

    Paris, France – July 16, 2025 – Atos, a leading provider of AI-powered digital transformation, today announces the availability of Atos Polaris AI Platform in the new AI Agents and Tools category of AWS Marketplace. Customers can now use AWS Marketplace to easily discover, buy and deploy AI agents solutions, including Atos’ Agentic and Generative AI solution using their AWS accounts, accelerating AI agent and agentic workflow development.

    The Atos Polaris AI Platform helps organizations simplify business operations, such as quality assurance, IT support, contract compliance, financial analysis and market research, enabling customers to orchestrate complex business workflows with real-time data synchronization.

    “By offering Atos Polaris AI Platform in AWS Marketplace we’re providing customers with a streamlined way to access our Atos Polaris AI Platform, helping them buy and deploy agent solutions faster and more efficiently,” said Alexa Van Den Bempt, EVP, Head of Group Partnerships at Atos. “Our customers in many industries are already using these capabilities to help them leverage a comprehensive framework of autonomous AI agents that orchestrate complex business workflows, demonstrating the real-world value of Atos Polaris AI Platform.”

    Atos Polaris AI Platform delivers essential capabilities including financial reports analysis, IT support and quality assurance. These features enable customers to interpret and analyze large documents and reports to provide highly accurate summaries and actionable recommendations based on specific requirements.

    With the availability of AI Agents and Tools in AWS Marketplace, customers can significantly accelerate their procurement process to drive AI innovation, reducing the time needed for vendor evaluations and complex negotiations. With centralized purchasing through AWS accounts, customers maintain visibility and control over licensing, payments and access through AWS.

    To learn more about Atos Polaris AI Platform in AWS Marketplace, visit https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/pp/prodview-5hs53x6h5xtyq 

    To learn more about the new Agents and Tools category in AWS Marketplace, visit https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/solutions/ai-agents-and-tools/

    ***

    About Atos Group

    Atos Group is a global leader in digital transformation with c. 72,000 employees and annual revenue of c. € 10 billion, operating in 68 countries under two brands — Atos for services and Eviden for products. European number one in cybersecurity, cloud and high-performance computing, Atos Group is committed to a secure and decarbonized future and provides tailored AI-powered, end-to-end solutions for all industries. Atos is a SE (Societas Europaea) and listed on Euronext Paris.

    The purpose of Atos is to help design the future of the information space. Its expertise and services support the development of knowledge, education and research in a multicultural approach and contribute to the development of scientific and technological excellence. Across the world, the Group enables its customers and employees, and members of societies at large to live, work and develop sustainably, in a safe and secure information space.

    Press contacts

    Global: Isabelle Grangé | isabelle.grange@atos.net

    North America: Maggie Wainscott | maggie.wainscott@atos.net

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Atos announces availability of Atos Polaris AI Platform in the new AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools category

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Press Release

    Atos announces availability of Atos Polaris AI Platform in the new AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools category

    Paris, France – July 16, 2025 – Atos, a leading provider of AI-powered digital transformation, today announces the availability of Atos Polaris AI Platform in the new AI Agents and Tools category of AWS Marketplace. Customers can now use AWS Marketplace to easily discover, buy and deploy AI agents solutions, including Atos’ Agentic and Generative AI solution using their AWS accounts, accelerating AI agent and agentic workflow development.

    The Atos Polaris AI Platform helps organizations simplify business operations, such as quality assurance, IT support, contract compliance, financial analysis and market research, enabling customers to orchestrate complex business workflows with real-time data synchronization.

    “By offering Atos Polaris AI Platform in AWS Marketplace we’re providing customers with a streamlined way to access our Atos Polaris AI Platform, helping them buy and deploy agent solutions faster and more efficiently,” said Alexa Van Den Bempt, EVP, Head of Group Partnerships at Atos. “Our customers in many industries are already using these capabilities to help them leverage a comprehensive framework of autonomous AI agents that orchestrate complex business workflows, demonstrating the real-world value of Atos Polaris AI Platform.”

    Atos Polaris AI Platform delivers essential capabilities including financial reports analysis, IT support and quality assurance. These features enable customers to interpret and analyze large documents and reports to provide highly accurate summaries and actionable recommendations based on specific requirements.

    With the availability of AI Agents and Tools in AWS Marketplace, customers can significantly accelerate their procurement process to drive AI innovation, reducing the time needed for vendor evaluations and complex negotiations. With centralized purchasing through AWS accounts, customers maintain visibility and control over licensing, payments and access through AWS.

    To learn more about Atos Polaris AI Platform in AWS Marketplace, visit https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/pp/prodview-5hs53x6h5xtyq 

    To learn more about the new Agents and Tools category in AWS Marketplace, visit https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/solutions/ai-agents-and-tools/

    ***

    About Atos Group

    Atos Group is a global leader in digital transformation with c. 72,000 employees and annual revenue of c. € 10 billion, operating in 68 countries under two brands — Atos for services and Eviden for products. European number one in cybersecurity, cloud and high-performance computing, Atos Group is committed to a secure and decarbonized future and provides tailored AI-powered, end-to-end solutions for all industries. Atos is a SE (Societas Europaea) and listed on Euronext Paris.

    The purpose of Atos is to help design the future of the information space. Its expertise and services support the development of knowledge, education and research in a multicultural approach and contribute to the development of scientific and technological excellence. Across the world, the Group enables its customers and employees, and members of societies at large to live, work and develop sustainably, in a safe and secure information space.

    Press contacts

    Global: Isabelle Grangé | isabelle.grange@atos.net

    North America: Maggie Wainscott | maggie.wainscott@atos.net

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Kaltura announces the availability of Kaltura Work Genie in the new AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools category

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    New York, July 16, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —

     Kaltura (Nasdaq: KLTR), the AI Video Experience Cloud, today announced the availability of the Kaltura Work Genie in the new AI Agents and Tools category of the AWS Marketplace. Customers can now use AWS Marketplace to easily discover, buy, and deploy AI agents solutions, including the Work Genie, one of a growing number of Kaltura’s AI-powered agents, using their AWS accounts, accelerating agent and agentic workflow development. 
     
    The Kaltura Work Genie helps organizations transform their enterprise knowledge into personalized, AI-driven learning and support paths, enabling customers to create engaging and impactful immersive digital experiences for enterprise customers and employees. 

    “By offering the Kaltura Work Genie in AWS Marketplace, we’re providing customers with a streamlined way to access to our personalized, AI-driven learning and marketing experiences, helping them buy and deploy agent solutions faster and more efficiently,” said Liad Eshkar, Chief Revenue Officer at Kaltura. “Our customers across every industry, from enterprise technology to education, financial services to healthcare, media and telecoms, are already using these capabilities to improve the impact of their content, make it more accessible and easily findable, and ultimately drive better, quantifiable results, demonstrating the real-world value of Work Genie.” 
     
    Kaltura Work Genie delivers essential capabilities, including tools that help redefine customer and employee journeys, boost adoption of new technologies, and improve retention. Unlike generic AI tools, Work Genie draws exclusively from an organization’s trusted content, eliminating the risk of hallucinations and improving the reliability and impact of the response. The Work Genie turns complex inqueiries into dynamic learning experiences, including micro learning modules with formats such as flashcards, video snippets, quizzes and more, reducing search time and maximizing the impact for employees, customers, and partners. Kaltura’s suite of AI agents, including the Work Genie, has propelled it to market leadership, as noted in the recent IDC MarketScape: Worldwide AI-Enabled Enterprise Video Platform 2025 Vendor Assessment. 

    With the availability of AI Agents and Tools in AWS Marketplace, customers can significantly accelerate their procurement process to drive AI innovation, reducing the time needed for vendor evaluations and complex negotiations. With centralized purchasing using AWS accounts, customers maintain visibility and control over licensing, payments, and access through AWS. 
     
     
    To learn more about the Kaltura Work Genie in AWS Marketplace, visit here. To learn more about the new Agents and Tools category in AWS Marketplace, visit here.
     
    About Kaltura  

    Kaltura’s mission is to create and power AI-infused hyper-personalized video experiences that boost customer and employee engagement and success. Kaltura’s Video Experience Cloud includes a platform for enterprise and TV content management and a wide array of Gen AI-infused video-first products, including Video Portals, LMS and CMS Video Extensions, Virtual Events and Webinars, Virtual Classrooms, and TV Streaming Applications. Kaltura engages millions of end-users at home, at work, and at school, boosting both customer and employee experiences, including marketing, sales, and customer success; teaching, learning, training and certification; communication and collaboration; and entertainment and monetization. For more information, visit https://corp.kaltura.com    

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Varonis is Now Available in the New AWS Marketplace AI Agents and Tools Category

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    MIAMI, July 16, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Varonis Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: VRNS), the leader in data security, today announced the availability of Varonis for AWS in the new AI Agents and Tools category of AWS Marketplace. Customers can now use AWS Marketplace to easily discover, buy, and deploy AI agent solutions, including Varonis, using their AWS accounts, accelerating agent and agentic workflow development.

    The Varonis platform delivers essential capabilities to protect data in the AI era. Varonis discovers and classifies sensitive data across your AWS resources and workloads, automatically fixes misconfigurations, right-sizes data access, and identifies suspicious activity.

    “By offering Varonis in AWS Marketplace, we’re providing customers with a streamlined way to access Varonis for AWS and help them buy and deploy agent solutions faster and more efficiently,” said Varonis EVP of Engineering and Chief Technology Officer David Bass. “Our customers are already using these capabilities to help safeguard the data fueling their AI initiatives with one comprehensive platform.”

    With the availability of AI Agents and Tools in AWS Marketplace, customers can significantly accelerate their procurement process to drive AI innovation, reducing the time needed for vendor evaluations and complex negotiations. With centralized purchasing using AWS accounts, customers maintain visibility and control over licensing, payments, and access through AWS.

    Learn more about Varonis in AWS Marketplace. To learn more about the new AI Agents and Tools storefront in AWS Marketplace, visit https://aws.amazon.com/marketplace/solutions/ai-agents-and-tools/.

    Additional Resources

    About Varonis

    Varonis (Nasdaq: VRNS) is a leader in data security, fighting a different battle than conventional cybersecurity companies. Our cloud-native Data Security Platform continuously discovers and classifies critical data, removes exposures, and detects advanced threats with AI-powered automation.

    Thousands of organizations worldwide trust Varonis to defend their data wherever it lives — across SaaS, IaaS, and hybrid cloud environments. Customers use Varonis to automate a wide range of security outcomes, including data security posture management (DSPM), data classification, data access governance (DAG), data detection and response (DDR), data loss prevention (DLP), AI security, identity protection, and insider risk management.

    Varonis protects data first, not last. Learn more at www.varonis.com.

    Investor Relations Contact:
    Tim Perz
    Varonis Systems, Inc.
    646-640-2112
    investors@varonis.com 

    News Media Contact:
    Rachel Hunt
    Varonis Systems, Inc.
    877-292-8767 (ext. 1598)
    pr@varonis.com

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Diene Keita Designated Acting Executive Director of UNFPA

    Source: United Nations Population Fund

    Effective 16 July 2025, the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres has designated Ms. Diene Keita as Acting Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

    Ms. Keita, who has served as UNFPA’s Assistant Secretary-General and Deputy Executive Director (Programme) since August 2020, will serve as Acting Executive Director of UNFPA until a new Executive Director is appointed. This designation follows the retirement of Dr. Natalia Kanem after her distinguished tenure of more than eight years at the helm of the organization.

    Ms. Keita brings to the role over three decades of leadership in international development and public service. Her career includes service as Minister for Cooperation and African Integration for the Republic of Guinea, alongside extensive experience within the United Nations. She has held senior leadership positions within UNFPA, including as Representative in Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo—two of the organization’s largest programmes. She has acted as United Nations Resident Coordinator in Mauritania, Benin, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Ms. Keita began her United Nations career in 1990 with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

    Throughout her career, Ms. Keita has worked extensively on the empowerment of women and youth, inclusive growth, demographic issues, and sustainable human development. She has focused on addressing sexual and reproductive health, as well as on ending gender-based violence in humanitarian settings.

    Ms. Keita holds a doctorate in Law and advanced degrees in International Economics and Development Law and International Relations from the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. She is fluent in English, French and Italian. 

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Note to Correspondents: MH17 tragedy

    Source: United Nations secretary general

    Tomorrow, we mark the 11th anniversary of the downing of the Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 over Eastern Ukraine and the 298 lives lost on that tragic day.

    The Secretary-General stands in full solidarity with the families of the victims and in honour of their memory.

    Pursuant to Security Council Resolution 2166, the Secretary-General urges all States to extend their full cooperation to ensure that those responsible are held to account, following the important work of the independent Joint Investigation Team.
     

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: PacifiCan investment to boost trade and export success for B.C. businesses

    Source: Government of Canada News (2)

    Minister Robertson announces $2.5M investment for companies across B.C., highlighting PacifiCan’s impact across the Southern Interior

    July 16, 2025 – Kelowna, British Columbia – PacifiCan

    As one of Canada’s fastest-growing cities, Kelowna, a regional hub in B.C.’s interior, is powered by a diverse economy, a thriving tech sector, and a strong spirit of entrepreneurship.

    PacifiCan has offices across the province, including Kelowna, supporting the entrepreneurs and innovators driving B.C.’s future. Since 2021, PacifiCan has invested over $47M in 156 projects across the Southern Interior, with over $28M in 65 projects specifically in Kelowna and nearby communities in the Thompson-Okanagan. These investments are fueling key sectors like tech, tourism, and manufacturing – creating well-paying jobs, and helping the region remain a hub of innovation and opportunity.

    Today, the Honourable Gregor Robertson, Minister of Housing and Infrastructure and Minister responsible for Pacific Economic Development Canada (PacifiCan), announced an investment of $2.5M to help businesses in Kelowna and throughout B.C. find opportunities for growth in new markets and manage the impacts of tariffs.

    Through this investment, $1.2 million will allow Community Futures British Columbia (CFBC) to continue delivering the Export Navigator program, which helps B.C. businesses become export-ready. Export Navigator pairs businesses with expert advisors in regions across the province who provide personalized guidance to help them achieve their export goals. To date, Export Navigator has helped more than 1,200 businesses begin their export journey, including 280 businesses in the Thompson-Okanagan alone. This initiative also received $1.2 million from the Province of B.C.

    The remaining $1.3 million of PacifiCan investment will help CFBC and the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade (GVBOT) support B.C. businesses as they adjust to a changing economy and meet requirements of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) through two specialized initiatives:

    • $900,000 for CFBC to launch the CUSMA Compliance Advisory Services Initiative (CCASI), delivered through Export Navigator. This initiative will provide expert advisory services and up to $5,000 to help businesses cover the costs of becoming CUSMA compliant.
    • $380,500 for GVBOT to deliver a series of webinars and in-person workshops in six B.C. communities. These sessions will connect businesses with experts, including customs brokers, lawyers and other professionals, who will provide valuable guidance on CUSMA compliance.

    As the Government of Canada works towards building one Canadian economy, PacifiCan will continue helping businesses across B.C. remove barriers and unlock new trade opportunities.

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Canada invests $2.2 million to support families of missing and murdered Indigenous people in Nova Scotia

    Source: Government of Canada News (2)

    July 16, 2025 – Truro, Nova Scotia – Department of Justice Canada

    The Government of Canada is investing $2.2 million over five years to help Nova Scotia support more families of missing and murdered Indigenous people. This funding will enhance the province’s Family Information Liaison Unit and expand community outreach efforts through the Nova Scotia Native Women’s Association.

    The announcement was made today by Jaime Battiste, Member of Parliament for Cape Breton–Canso–Antigonish, on behalf of Sean Fraser, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, at the Nova Scotia Native Women’s Association.

    Nova Scotia will use the funding to hire a full-time case coordinator for Victim Services, improving how families are supported through every step of the process. The Nova Scotia Native Women’s Association will also hire a full-time community outreach worker to help connect families with culturally grounded support and services.

    The Family Information Liaison Unit works directly with families using a trauma-informed and culturally grounded approach. It helps gather answers from across government systems and connects families with Elders, cultural advisors, and other local supports. Units like this exist across Canada, supported by the Government of Canada in collaboration with provinces and territories.

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICE New Orleans investigation supports bribery indictment tied to immigration benefit fraud

    Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

    July 16, 2025New Orleans, LA, United StatesDocument and Benefit Fraud

    NEW ORLEANS — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations New Orleans partnered with federal and local law enforcement partners in an investigation that led to the indictment of multiple Louisiana law enforcement officers and a business owner accused of engaging in a bribery scheme involving U visa applications for noncitizen crime victims.

    The charges were announced July 15 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Louisiana.

    According to the indictment, the defendants allegedly accepted cash payments in exchange for signing or facilitating false claims of victimization.

    “We are grateful for our partners to keep Louisiana safe and stop those exploiting the immigration system,” said HSI New Orleans Special Agent in Charge Eric DeLaune.

    ICE remains committed to protecting the integrity of the immigration systems and ensuring those who exploit them for personal gain are held accountable.

    Read the full story here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Convicted felon caught twice with loaded firearms sentenced to over eight years in prison

    Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

    RICHMOND, Va. – A Richmond man was sentenced today to eight years and four months in prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm.

    According to court documents, on June 13, 2024, Richmond Police officers observed Emanuel Leon Crawford, Jr., 33, in a parking lot area of a convenience store on Mosby Street in Richmond acting suspiciously. When they got out of their patrol vehicle, Crawford fled on foot. As Crawford was running, he removed a crossbody bag and threw it. Officers took Crawford into custody and recovered the bag, which contained a loaded .40 caliber handgun. Officers also recovered 18 multi-colored pressed pills containing methamphetamine.

    On July 26, 2024, as officers served Crawford with a misdemeanor warrant, they found him in possession of a loaded 9mm handgun.

    Crawford was convicted in 2013 of attempted unlawful wounding, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and burglary of a residence. Crawford also was convicted in 2020 of possession with intent to distribute a Schedule I/II controlled substance. As a previously convicted felon, Crawford is prohibited from legally possessing firearms or ammunition.

    Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Anthony A. Spotswood, Special Agent in Charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Washington Field Division, made the announcement after sentencing by Senior U.S. District Judge Robert E. Payne.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Olivia L. Norman and Third-Year Law Student Kevin C. Teel prosecuted the case.

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.

    A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:24-cr-169.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Undocumented Mexican National Sentenced to Prison for Drug Trafficking and Illegal Reentry

    Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

    SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Armando Reyes-Ascension, 43, a Mexican national, living in the United States illegally, was sentenced to 58 months’ imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to immigration and drug trafficking crimes.  In less than three months, Reyes-Ascension, who was previously removed from the United States on three different occasions and criminally convicted of felony illegal reentry, was again found back in the United States and in possession of more than 9,000 fentanyl pills, a loaded firearm, several dangerous weapons, and more than $80,000 in cash.

    In addition to his term of imprisonment, Senior U.S. District Court Judge Clark Waddoups sentenced Reyes-Ascension to three years’ supervised release and ordered him to forfeit over $88,000.00 USD, a Smith and Wesson .380 caliber pistol, associated ammunition, including eight .380 rounds, nine knives and daggers, and nine collectors’ coins.

    According to court documents and statements made at Reyes-Ascension’s change of plea and sentencing hearings, on May 17, 2024, during an investigation, officers with the Salt Lake City Police Department seized 7,000 fentanyl pills, and $32,000 in cash from Reyes-Ascension’s apartment. On June 11, 2024, he was removed from the United States to Mexico by immigration officials. On August 7, 2024, Reyes-Ascension re-entered the United States illegally, and was found in Salt Lake County Metro jail after law enforcement had arrested him for drug crimes. During the arrest, officers seized 2,000 fentanyl pills and more than $55,000 cash, coins, and several dangerous weapons – including a firearm. See prior press release: Previously Removed Foreign National and Felon Indicted on Drug and Gun Crimes.

    Prior to Reyes-Ascension’s May 2024 arrest and third removal on June 11, 2024, he was previously removed from the United States to Mexico on two separate occasions; one of which he was convicted of illegal reentry of a previously removed alien on March 4, 2020.

    “Reyes-Ascension’s repeated criminal conduct is a complete and total disregard for the laws of this country, and it will not be tolerated,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Felice John Viti, of the District of Utah. “The defendant is a clear danger to Utah and the United States as a whole. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners will continue to prosecute anyone who breaks our laws and pumps poison into our communities.”

    “This sentencing sends a clear message that we will relentlessly pursue individuals who combine violent narcotics distribution with firearms offenses,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Brent Beavers. “Possessing poisonous dangerous drugs alongside a loaded firearm posed an imminent and grave threat to public safety. ATF remains committed to disrupting the nexus between illicit drugs and guns because every one of the weapons we take off the street is one less chance for tragedy in our communities.”

    “Defendants like Reyes-Ascension knowingly put people’s lives at risk,” said Special Agent in Charge Mehtab Syed of the Salt Lake City FBI. “The FBI and our partners will not stand by as traffickers, especially those in the United States illegally, push dangerous drugs into our neighborhoods. We will aggressively pursue those who seek to profit by fueling the opioid epidemic.”

    The case was investigated jointly by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Salt Lake City Police Department, and the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office.

    Assistant United States Attorney Bryan N. Reeves of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah prosecuted the case.

    This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results. For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, please visit Justice.gov/PSN.
     

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Security: KC Man Indicted for Illegally Possessing Ammunition

    Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

    KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A Kansas City, Mo., man illegally possessed ammunition has been indicted by a federal grand jury.

    Brian H. Brown, 49, was charged today in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo.  Today’s indictment replaces a federal criminal complaint that was filed against Brown on July 7, 2025.

    The federal indictment charges Brown with being a felon in possession of ammunition on July 3, 2025.

    According to an affidavit filed in support of the original complaint, Kansas City, Mo. Police Department officers were dispatched to 97th Terrace and Holmes Avenue at approximately 6:30 p.m. for an accident involving a disturbance with an armed party.  An officer contacted the suspect, who was identified as Brown.  Brown began to tell the officer about the accident and the officer believed Brown was driving while intoxicated.  The officer ordered Brown to place his hands behind his back and Brown refused the officer’s commands.  A struggle ensued between Brown and the officer, and the officer observed a handgun in Brown’s shorts pocket.  Brown was eventually arrested, and the handgun was removed from his pocket.

    The firearm was identified as a Polymer 80, “P-80”, camouflage in color.  It was loaded with eleven rounds of ammunition.  The firearm did not have a visible serial number.

    Under federal law, it is illegal for anyone who has been convicted of a felony to be in possession of any firearm or ammunition.  Brown has felony convictions for trafficking in drugs, distribution of a controlled substance, possession of a controlled substance, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

    The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

    This case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jessica L. Jennings. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department.

    Operation Take Back America

    These cases are part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Warner & Kaine Slam Republican Rescissions Bill Cutting National Security Funding and Making Americans less Safe

    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, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, slammed the Republican rescissions package that cancels $8.3 billion in federal funding previously appropriated by a bipartisan majority in Congress for national security programs:
    “If Republicans move forward with these massive cuts to the State Department, USAID, and other key agencies and programs, the world will become more unpredictable and unstable, which puts Americans at risk. Experts estimate that 14 million people will die, humanitarian crises will worsen, horrific diseases will spread, our Afghan partners will be faced with increased uncertainty about their futures, and China will become even more emboldened as Beijing continues to fill the leadership void left by the U.S.’s retreat. Destroying USAID and canceling critical U.S. national security programs, without any coherent strategy or rationale for doing so, sets us back when it comes to addressing the many national security challenges that we are facing. Any of our colleagues who care about the security of our great nation should vote against this rescissions package.”
    The U.S. Constitution grants Congress the authority to approve and appropriate federal dollars. While a sitting president can propose the cancelation of appropriated funding, only Congress has the authority to revoke it, and must do so by passing a rescissions bill. The Republican rescissions package will be voted on in the Senate this week.
    The legislation cuts previously appropriated State Department and USAID funding, including for global health programs that keep Americans safe from diseases and faith-based organizations that do essential work in the U.S. and abroad. It also eliminates funding for Afghan refugee programs, United Nations peacekeeping operations, the U.S. Institute for Peace, the Inter-American Foundation, and the African Development Foundation. These cuts will impact thousands of Virginia’s federal employees and contractors who carry out important refugee and development work. A recent study found that if the current cuts to USAID continue through 2030, 14 million people could die.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: News 07/16/2025 Blackburn, Arrington Introduce Bill to Make States Pay for Federal Military Deployment Caused by Immigration Enforcement Obstruction

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn)
    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and U.S. Representative Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) introduced the State Accountability for Federal Deployment Costs Act, which would hold states refusing to enforce federal immigration law financially responsible when their actions force the federal government to deploy military resources to restore order:

    “As lawless states like California obstruct the federal government’s work to enforce immigration law, American taxpayers in other states have been forced to foot the bill for the military forces required to quell the chaos and protect law-abiding citizens,” said Senator Blackburn. “If a state refuses to do its job and forces the federal government to respond to unrest, they should pay for it. The State Accountability for Federal Deployment Costs Act would require states to reimburse the federal government to cover these costs and send a message that refusing to comply with federal immigration law will not be tolerated.”

    “Sanctuary policies that obstruct federal law enforcement jeopardize communities and drain valuable resources – in fact, their very existence is a violation of the law,” said Chairman Arrington. “It’s entirely unacceptable for states that refuse to enforce immigration laws to expect taxpayers in states like Texas and Tennessee to foot the bill when the consequences of their lawlessness results in federal action. I’m proud to team up with Senator Blackburn to ensure that states that break the law, pay the price.”
    BACKGROUND
    Recently, the U.S. Department of Defense was forced to spend over $130 million deploying troops to Los Angeles to respond to protests over immigration enforcement.
    The federal government bears significant financial burdens when military personnel, such as active-duty service members or federally activated National Guard troops, are deployed to respond to civil disturbances or public safety threats.
    These deployments are not discretionary military operations but necessary responses to restore public order when states refuse to cooperate with lawful federal immigration enforcement efforts.
    Sanctuary policies, refusal to honor detainers, and public interference in federal operations have increased the likelihood of unrest and forced the federal government to intervene as American taxpayers across the country are forced to foot the bill.
    THE STATE ACCOUNTABILITY FOR FEDERAL DEPLOYMENT COSTS ACT
    The State Accountability for Federal Deployment Costs Act would:
    Require states to reimburse the U.S. Department of Defense for costs associated with military deployments that are:
    Initiated by the federal government, and
    Directly caused by a state’s failure to cooperate with lawful federal immigration enforcement.
    Cover costs including travel, housing, equipment, and readiness impacts incurred by military personnel deployed under Title 10 authority.
    Direct the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the U.S. Attorney General, to issue determinations of whether a state or locality’s refusal to assist materially contributed to the need for federal deployment.
    Mandate that states remit full payment within 180 days of receiving an invoice from the U.S. Department of Defense.
    Authorize the federal government to offset unpaid reimbursement amounts from federal discretionary grants awarded to the state
    Require the U.S. Secretary of Defense to submit semiannual reports to Congress on affected deployments, reimbursement status, and readiness impacts.
    Click here for bill text.
    RELATED

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Statement attributable to the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General – on Syria

    Source: United Nations secretary general

    The Secretary-General is alarmed by the continued escalation of violence in Suweida, a Druze-majority area, which has reportedly claimed the lives of hundreds of people, including civilians, and injured and displaced many more.
     
    He unequivocally condemns all violence against civilians, including reports of arbitrary killings and acts that fan the flames of sectarian tensions and rob the people of Syria of their opportunity for peace and reconciliation after fourteen years of brutal conflict.
     
    He extends his heartfelt condolences to all Syrians and reiterates his call for an immediate de-escalation of violence and urgent measures to restore calm and facilitate humanitarian access.
     
    The Secretary-General takes note of the statement by the Office of the Presidency condemning the violations and committing to investigating and holding to account those responsible for them. He reiterates his appeal for the transparency of the process.
     
    The Secretary-General further condemns Israel’s escalatory airstrikes on Suweida, Daraa and in the center of Damascus, as well as reports of the IDF’s redeployment of forces in the Golan. He calls for an immediate cessation of all violations of Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and for respect for the 1974 Disengagement of Forces Agreement.
     
    The Secretary-General reiterates that it is imperative to support a credible, orderly and inclusive political transition in Syria in line with the key principles of Security Council resolution 2254 (2015).
     

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Saskatchewan Poised to Make Canada an Energy and Mining Superpower

    Source: Government of Canada regional news

    Released on July 16, 2025

    Saskatchewan’s strong and growing resource sectors are positioning the province to play a significant role in Canada becoming a global energy and resource superpower.

    “Saskatchewan has a lot to be proud of. We are already Canada’s largest primary producer of critical minerals and global demand for these essential commodities will increase dramatically in the coming years,” Energy and Resources Minister Colleen Young said. “Making the most of this opportunity will require the federal and provincial governments to work quickly and collaboratively to increase Canada’s export capacity, streamline bulky regulatory processes and build investor confidence. It’s time to unleash Saskatchewan’s world-class resource sector and fully realize our economic potential.” 

    Saskatchewan is projected to attract over $7 billion in overall mining investment in 2025, which will again lead the country. Exploration spending is strong, with Saskatchewan projected to reach 15 per cent of all Canadian mineral exploration spending in 2025, well ahead of the 2030 target set out in Saskatchewan’s Critical Minerals Strategy.

    This achievement is supported by initiatives like the Targeted Mineral Exploration Incentive, which was recently expanded to include more early-stage exploration activities to support mining sector growth and investment. Saskatchewan’s incentive package and strong regulatory regime has been recognized by the Fraser Institute’s Annual Survey of Mining Companies, which consistently ranks Saskatchewan as the top jurisdiction in Canada and the top three in the world for mining investment competitiveness. 

    Saskatchewan is the world’s second largest uranium producer and reached all-time highs in uranium sales and production last year, achieving $2.6 billion and 16.7 thousand tonnes, respectively. With one uranium mine scheduled to resume production this year and two more projects awaiting final federal approvals, production is expected to increase significantly over the next several years. 

    Saskatchewan is also the world’s largest potash producer, accounting for approximately one-third of global production. Last year, Saskatchewan produced a record 15.1 million metric tonnes potassium oxide (K2O) of potash, which was an increase of 8 per cent from 2023. The province expects potash production to ramp up in the coming years with companies outlining new yearly growth targets and new mines coming online. 

    Saskatchewan is seeing growth in emerging industries such as helium, lithium, copper and zinc. Saskatchewan is Canada’s largest helium producer with industry having invested over $500 million in the province. The first commercial scale lithium production is expected later this year, while copper and zinc production are expected to begin in 2026. 

    The Government of Saskatchewan continues to call for significant federal investment to build national energy corridors to get more resource products to tidewater. Additionally, Saskatchewan has been advocating for faster approvals for large resource projects to attract investment and ensure Canada has secure and reliable energy and mineral production. With the current volatility in global supply chains, Saskatchewan and Canada are well positioned to be a stable supplier and reliable partner for the world’s demand of critical energy and resource products.

    For more information about the TMEI, visit: Targeted Mineral Exploration Incentive

    To review Saskatchewan’s Critical Minerals Strategy, visit: Securing the Future: Saskatchewan’s Critical Minerals Strategy.

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    For more information, contact:

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Know Your Limit, Stay Within It!

    Source: Government of Canada regional news

    Released on July 16, 2025

    Fishing in Saskatchewan this summer? Know your limit and stay within it! 

    “Our province is celebrated by both residents and visitors for its breathtaking waters and world-class fishing opportunities,” Environment Minister Travis Keisig said. “By respecting catch limits, anglers play a vital role in supporting Saskatchewan’s efforts to maintain healthy, thriving fish populations for generations to come.”

    Before hitting the lake, anyone planning on fishing should check out the 2025-26 Anglers Guide to review rules, tools and tips to make the most of their experience. The guide is available online at saskatchewan.ca/fishing or wherever fishing licences are sold.

    Remember: Saskatchewan angling regulations set daily limits for the maximum amount and size of fish that can be caught and retained in most waters. This includes all fish that are caught, eaten, given away, stored or transported – whether at your campsite, while travelling or held by someone else on your behalf. 

    Most provincial Crown waters in Saskatchewan follow general fishing limits. However, certain waters have special regulations that may further restrict what you can catch or how you fish. If you are angling in one of these areas, you must follow the specific rules that apply.

    For water body maps, lists of fish species and special regulations, visit the Hunting, Angling and Biodiversity Information of Saskatchewan page at HABISask.

    For more information about fishing in Saskatchewan, visit: saskatchewan.ca/fishing.   

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    For more information, contact:

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Bacon and Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Protect U.S. Farmland from Foreign Ownership

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Don Bacon (2nd District of Nebraska)

    Bipartisan Legislation Closes Critical Gaps in Foreign Agricultural Land Ownership Tracking

    Washington – Recently, Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE-02) along with Reps. Mark Alford (R-MO-04), Michael Bost (R-IL-12), Salud Carbajal (D-CA-24), Henry Cuellar (D-TX-28), Brad Finstad (R-MN-01), Ashley Hinson (R-IA-02), Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA-06), Dan Newhouse (R-WA-04), and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19) introduced bipartisan legislation, H.R. 4362, the AFIDA Improvements Act of 2025, to address concerns about foreign farmland ownership.

    The AFIDA Improvements Act codifies recommendations published by the GAO to amend the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) to ensure there is timely and detailed data sharing of foreign investments in agricultural land transactions, better oversight and validation of information, and a better way to help identify those foreign entities who do not file notification they have purchased land in the United States. This legislation will help the United States better track and combat the CCP trying to buy up farmland. 

    The full text of H.R. 4362 the AFIDA Improvements Act of 2025 can be found here.

    “The AFIDA Improvements Act is a bipartisan path to address the national security concerns stemming from the growing purchases of farmland by the Chinese Communist Party. This legislation, among other things, will ensure there is timely and detailed data sharing of foreign investments in agricultural land, better reviewing and validating of information, and identify those foreign entities who do not file notification they have purchased land in the United States,” said Rep. Bacon. “Having actual processes in place will strengthen the security of our nation in the event nefarious foreign agents, such as the CCP, try to purchase agricultural lands within our nation. These lands must be protected as they are essential to feeding our country and other parts of the world, feeding livestock, fueling vehicles, and other uses.”

    “Purchases of American farmland by foreign adversaries are a grave national security risk that has gone on for too long,” said Rep. Alford. “The Trump Administration and House Republicans have made confronting this threat a top priority. The AFIDA Improvements Act will provide the necessary data reporting and transparency for land transactions to help the government weed out unscrupulous land deals. This bill is a critical part of protecting U.S. farmland and should be included in any larger package to address this egregious problem.”

    “We cannot allow foreign adversaries to quietly buy up America’s farmland and threaten our food supply and national security,” said Rep. Bost. “I’m proud to help lead the reintroduction of the AFIDA Improvements Act to shine a light on these shady land grabs, strengthen reporting requirements, and close loopholes that allow foreign entities to fly under the radar. If we don’t act now, we risk selling out our future one acre at a time.”

    “By modernizing AFIDA, we’re taking meaningful steps to safeguard our national security and ensure American farmland stays in American hands,” said Rep. Cuellar. “With Texas leading the nation in foreign-held agricultural land, these reforms are especially urgent for my home state. Our farmers and rural communities deserve transparency and accountability to prevent foreign adversaries from quietly buying up the land that feeds our country.”

    “Food security is national security, and Americans deserve to know how and to what extent foreign investment in American farmland, especially by our adversaries like China, poses a risk to our family farms and food supply,” said Rep. Finstad. “As a fourth-generation farmer, I believe it is critical that American farmland be owned by American farmers and I’m proud to join Rep. Bacon in introducing the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act, which will help us prevent foreign entity ownership.”

    “This legislation is a bipartisan, commonsense fix to a growing threat,” said Rep. Houlahan. “Adopting these recommendations from the non-partisan GAO is a step forward in protecting America’s military installations, farmers, and food security. I want to thank my colleagues from both sides of the aisle for advancing this important legislation.”

    “With the Secretary of Agriculture now a member of CFIUS, Congress should take the next steps towards policies that strengthen the reporting of foreign land purchases. Rep. Bacon’s legislation streamlines the reporting and data sharing of foreign investments into American farmland as another safeguard against the influence of the CCP,” said Rep. Newhouse. “We must remain vigilant in the effort to keep foreign adversaries out of our backyards and give authorities the information they need to be successful.”

    “Foreign entities, especially those tied to adversarial governments like the Chinese Communist Party, buying U.S. agricultural land poses a serious threat to our food and national security,” said Rep. Panetta. “The AFIDA Improvements Act implements commonsense, bipartisan reforms to provide transparency, accountability, and tools needed to monitor these transactions. By improving oversight of foreign land purchases, we can better protect America’s farmland, our agricultural economy, and the security of our nation.”

    Last Congress, AFIDA was successfully included in the Farm Bill passed by the House Agriculture Committee. Rep. Bacon looks forward to working with the Committee this Congress to advance this critical initiative.

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    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Speaker Johnson Joins Miranda Devine on New York Post’s Pod Force One

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Mike Johnson (LA-04)

    WASHINGTON — This week, Speaker Johnson sat down with the New York Post’s Miranda Devine for a wide-ranging discussion on her new podcast, Pod Force One. They discussed how Republicans are reestablishing fiscal sanity in Washington, the future of the MAGA movement, Speaker Johnson’s roots in Louisiana, and what he believes is the secret to success.

    Watch the full interview here

    On restoring fiscal sanity in Washington:

    We spend too much money. The debt is our number one national security threat and I came to Congress to solve it. The trajectory is not sustainable, but we can’t solve the problem overnight because it could took decades for us to get here. The big beautiful bill was a giant leap forward. We’re going to save over $1.5 trillion in spending. It’s the largest that any legislative body in the history of mankind has ever done. Is it enough? No. It’s a drop in the bucket, but it is a turn. I use the metaphor of an aircraft carrier for the US economy. You don’t turn an aircraft carrier on a dime; it takes a mile of open ocean when it’s at top speed. This was the first big crank on the wheel, the turn on the wheel that we’ve had in generations and now we have the next sequential steps to continue that.

    The president and his administration came in, they identified these areas like USAID for example, which was just fraught with abuse and wasteful uses of taxpayer dollars. We were funding transgender operas in Peru, you know? And Congress didn’t know that which is one of the credits to the DOGE effort as they were able to crack the code, get inside the belly at the agencies and crawl through the data with magic algorithms and find these things. And we didn’t know. So we found that out…And that we hope is the first of a series of rescissions packages that come forward where we, again, in our sequential steps to getting back fiscal, fiscal sanity, that’s going to be a piece of it. 

    On the future of the MAGA movement:

    I think the movement goes forward. It won’t be the same without him, but he’s done a recalibration of our party in many ways. We brought in new demographics, big groups of people that had not been with us probably since the early eighties under Reagan. We’re a working-class party, as we should be. We represent the core principles, and I’m one of the people who’s trying to keep us tied to the moorings. You know, the core principles of our party are the core principles of America. They’re the principles that made us the greatest nation in the history of the world, and we abandon them at our peril, you know? And so there’s a lot of competing ideas and different forces out there right now, but I think we got to hold on to the soul of the party because that’s what’s gotten us to this point. 

    On Speaker Johnson’s secret for success:

    This probably defies conventional wisdom, but it’s a matter of faith. You just be faithful and humble and you be faithful in the little thing that God puts before you today, and then you trust him with the rest. I quote often, John Quincy Adams, he famously said, “duty is ours, results are God’s.” It’s a very liberating way to live, you know, and you just try to do your best every day, do your responsibility, do your duty, and then I let the chips fall where they may. I’m not the sovereign and I’m so delighted that I’m not.

    I’m not sure anyone could navigate the modern speakership the way it’s evolved to today. Without that faith component, I’m not sure I would. Scripture says you love your enemy, of course, as yourself. We don’t have enemies in the building. They’re all colleagues. But it also says that you bless those who persecute you. You don’t keep a record of wrongs. The soft word turns away wrath. There’s so much wisdom in the scripture, and if you apply all that, it allows you to navigate very tricky waters and not take things personally.

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    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Castor Presses Trump Administration to Release Illegally Withheld Local Education Funds for Students and Educators

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Reprepsentative Kathy Castor (FL14)

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (FL-14) pressed U.S. Secretary of Education Lisa McMahon and Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought to immediately release more than $6 billion in federal education funds, including $398 million for Florida public schools that serve public school students and train educators. Castor highlights that the Administration is arbitrarily and illegally withholding congressionally-appropriated dollars without warning, and the detrimental impact on Tampa Bay area schools, students and families as districts prepare for the new school year.

    “The critical funding streams that are being withheld were approved by a bipartisan Congress to aid schools in training teachers, providing a well-rounded education, and supporting safe and healthy school and after-school initiatives,” wrote Rep. Castor. “This troubling delay of funding is unnecessarily disrupting budgeting and planning for the fast-approaching 2025-2026 academic school year, jeopardizing education initiatives for students and families and resulting in program cancellations.”

    Castor closed, “I urge you to end the pause and immediately release these funds that are critical to our students, families, schools and the local economy in the Tampa Bay area.”

    Rep. Castor’s letters detailed the harmful effects of the freeze in both Hillsborough and Pinellas Counties, which together serve more than 300,000 students. Hillsborough County Public Schools face a potential $24.2 million loss, threatening initiatives like teacher mentoring, literacy training, safety monitors and tutoring. In Pinellas County, nearly $9 million is at risk, including funding for STEM innovation, gifted and talented programming, mental health counseling and college readiness initiatives.

    Rep. Castor called on the Trump Administration officials to communicate clearly with local school districts and release the approved funds without delay to avoid canceled initiatives and uncertainty for students, educators and families.

    Read the HCPS letter here and the PCS letter here.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Casten, 16 House Democrats FOIA Request EPA for Info on Employee Firings, Rollbacks

    Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Sean Casten (IL-06)

    July 16, 2025

    Washington, D.C. — U.S. Congressman Sean Casten (IL-06) led 16 House Democrats in submitting a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for details of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin’s efforts to slow-walk the promulgation and enforcement of public health standards.

    “At your January 16 confirmation hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, you pledged to be ‘transparent and accountable to Congress and the public,’” the lawmakers wrote. “In keeping with that commitment, please provide us with copies of the records requested below. Your response will help address our concerns about the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) implementation of the President’s various executive orders and other actions.”

    In their FOIA request, the lawmakers have demanded information on, among other things:

    • The interest groups that Zeldin and other senior officials have met with and the lobbying documents they have provided;

    • EPA’s current pace of inspections and enforcement, key metrics in assessing how the agency is fulfilling its responsibility of enforcing environmental laws and regulations;

    • Any actual or proposed actions to expedite certain permits pursuant to the “emergency authority” of an executive order;

    • The number of EPA’s public servants who have left or are leaving;

    • The job classifications of the individuals installed in Zeldin’s front office; and

    • The specific statutory provisions that authorize EPA to waive or modify otherwise-applicable requirements under existing federal laws, in following the president’s executive orders. 

    In addition to Rep. Casten, the request was signed by Reps. Jamie Raskin, Summer Lee, Lloyd Doggett, Delia Ramirez, Cleo Fields, Rashida Tlaib, Jan Schakowsky, Pramila Jayapal, Jesús G. “Chuy” García, Mike Quigley, Mark Takano, Sarah Elfreth, Troy Carter, Steve Cohen, and Jim McGovern.

    A copy of the FOIA request can be found here. Text of the request is below.

    Dear Administrator Zeldin,

    At your January 16 confirmation hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, you pledged to be “transparent and accountable to Congress and the public.” In keeping with that commitment, please provide us with copies of the records requested below. Your response will help address our concerns about the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) implementation of the President’s various executive orders and other actions. Freedom of Information Act Request Our specific requests for EPA records listed below are submitted pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 USC 552. For purposes of this request, “records” include reports, memoranda, power points, correspondence, or other responsive documents. At this time, we are not seeking copies of (a) emails that transmit, discuss or acknowledge receipt of the records requested; (b) draft or marked up versions of any document; (c) press clippings or any record of media coverage; or (d) any information that is exempt from disclosure under 42 USC 552(b), provided that EPA identifies the specific exemptions in that paragraph that justify withholding records responsive to this request. 

    We expect EPA to waive any fees associated with your response to our request, as disclosure will contribute significantly to public understanding of the operations and activities of a government agency and does not serve any private commercial interest. 

    A. Calendar for EPA Administrator and Other Political Appointees

    Former EPA Administrator William Ruckelshaus released the so-called “fishbowl” memo in May 1983, which included a promise to make the meeting calendars for the Administrator, Deputy Administrator, Assistant, Associate and Regional Administrators, and Staff Office Directors publicly available by the end of each week.

    1. EPA provides online access to “simplified meeting calendars” for the Administrator, Regional Administrators, and other high-ranking officials at https://www.epa.gov/senior-leaders-calendars, but advises that a FOIA request is required to obtain the “official record” of such meetings. Please provide copies of the official record of all meetings between January 20 and July 15, 2025, for the Administrator, all Regional Administrators, and for Barry Breen, Kimberly Patrick, Maureen Gwinn, Chad McIntosh, Sarah Dunham, Gregg Tremi, Rick Keigwin, Jeffrey A. Hall, James Payne, Rafael DeLeon, and Peggy Browne.

    2. Please provide a copy of any analyses, power point presentations, charts, reports, letters, or other documents provided to the Office of the Administrator that were prepared by, or on behalf of, any individual or organization identified in the official record of your meeting calendar. You may exclude any confidential briefing materials prepared by any EPA employee.

    B. EPA Workforce

    The numerous announcements regarding the number of EPA employees terminated, rehired, retiring, accepting buyouts, or subject to actual or planned reductions in staffing have left Congress and the public confused about the actual size of EPA’s workforce and its capacity to carry out its mission.

    1. For each office, program or region that appears on EPA’s website at https://www.epa.gov/aboutepa/epa-organization-chart, please provide records that identify the total number of full time-equivalents (FTE) on EPA’s payroll as of July 15, 2025.

    2. For each office, program or region, please provide records that identify the number of FTE’s who:

      1. are on administrative leave because they have accepted buyouts and are expected to leave EPA on or before September 30, 2025;

      2. have been placed on administrative for any other reason; 

      3. are still employed but have notified EPA of their intention to retire on or before September 30, 2025;

      4. are still employed, but will be terminated on or before September 30, 2025, due to planned reductions in enforce or the elimination of specific functions or programs; and

      5. have been hired since January 20, 2025, excluding any employees who were rehired after they were mistakenly terminated.

    Please provide records that identify the number, name, and job classifications of individuals hired by the Office of the Administrator since January 20, 2025.

    C. EPA Enforcement Actions

    Federal environmental law directs EPA to notify sources violating permit or pollution control standards, as well as the relevant state agencies, and authorizes (and in some cases requires) EPA enforcement actions if needed to bring violators into compliance. 

    Please provide copies of the following records:

    1. Notices of noncompliance issued by EPA from January 1, 2024, to the present, including notices of violation, findings of violation, or warning letters;

    2. Civil complaints filed in federal court since January 1, 2023, for any cases that have not yet been resolved through litigation or an appropriate consent decree;

    3. Inspection reports completed since January 1, 2024;

    4. Information requests issued since January 1, 2024; and

    5. Administrative penalty orders that are still pending, i.e., have not been resolved through consent orders.

    D. EPA Reports Required By Executive Order

    The EPA and other federal agencies are required to report regularly on the actions they have taken to implement President Trump’s various executive orders. We request copies of the reports or records itemized below, along with any records of the analyses that EPA relied upon to prepare them. 

    Executive Order 14156: The Clean Water Act authorizes the Army Corps of Engineers to expedite the permitting of projects that may pollute wetlands or other waters during emergency situations that result in “…an unacceptable hazard to life, a significant loss of property, or an immediate, unforeseen, and significant economic hardship…” (33 C.F.R. 325.2(e)). Executive Order (EO) 14156, “Declaring a National Energy Emergency,” directs the EPA and other agencies to exercise this emergency permitting authority “…to the fullest extent possible…to facilitate the Nation’s energy supply”; to identify actual, planned or potential actions to implement this directive within 30 days (by February 19), and every thirty days thereafter to report on their status as well as any new opportunities to exercise this emergency authority.

    Please provide a copy of:

    1. all reports that EPA has prepared and submitted in response to EO 14156; and

    2.  any actual or potential actions to expedite permits pursuant to the emergency authority cited in EO 14156.

    Executive Order 14154: EO 14154, “Unleashing American Energy,” requires EPA and other Agencies to suspend, revise, or rescind “…all existing regulations, orders, guidance documents, policies, settlements, consent orders and any other actions…” that impose an undue burden on the “development and use” of fossil fuels, critical minerals, and other energy sources that do not include wind, solar power, or electric vehicles. Agencies must notify the Attorney General of any actions taken to implement this directive and within 30 days report to OMB as to whether reducing or eliminating enforcement could help to implement the President’s policy goals.

    Please provide a copy of any record of:

    1. the EPA actions reported to the Attorney General under EO 14154;

    2. any report or other document provided to OMB regarding the actual or potential exercise of its enforcement authority under EO 14154; and

    3. for any federal law implemented in whole or in part by EPA, any records that interpret the specific statutory provisions that authorize the EPA to waive or modify otherwise applicable requirements.

    4. any guidance, memoranda, or policy issued by EPA that establish or explain the criteria for determing when a regulation, order, guidance, policy, settlement, consent order or “any other action” will pose an “undue burden” on the development or use of fossil fuels or critical minerals.

    Please feel free to contact me directly if you have questions about the scope of this request or wish to discuss a schedule for response. Alternatively, your staff may contact Nikki Roy in my office (Nikki.Roy@mail.house.gov). Thank you for your attention to our request. We look forward to your reply.

    Sincerely,

    ###

    MIL OSI USA News –