Category: Russian Federation

MIL-OSI Russia: Russian President V. Putin approved the composition of the Russian delegation for negotiations with Ukraine — Kremlin

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

Moscow, May 14 /Xinhua/ — Russian President Vladimir Putin has approved the composition of the Russian delegation for talks with Ukraine. This was reported on the Kremlin website on Wednesday.

“To approve the following composition of the delegation of the Russian Federation for negotiations with Ukraine: Vladimir Medinsky – Aide to the President of the Russian Federation /head of the delegation/, Mikhail Galuzin – Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation /member of the delegation/, Igor Kostyukov – Chief of the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation /member of the delegation/, Alexander Fomin – Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation /member of the delegation/,” reads the order signed by V. Putin “On the composition of the delegation of the Russian Federation for negotiations with Ukraine.”

The composition of experts has also been approved; it includes: First Deputy Chief of Information of the Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation Alexander Zorin, Deputy Chief of the Directorate of the President of the Russian Federation for State Policy in the Humanitarian Sphere Elena Podobreevskaya, Director of the Second Department of the CIS Countries of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Alexei Polishchuk and Deputy Chief of the Main Directorate of International Military Cooperation of the Russian Ministry of Defense Viktor Shevtsov.

As reported, this order comes into force on the day of its signing. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Treasury Secretary Bessent Defends Tax Breaks for those who Invest in China

Source: United States House of Representatives – Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Our tax system allows for lower tax rates for capital gains on stocks to incentivize Americans to make investments that grow our economy. Yet, Americans who invest in companies abroad and build the economies of other nations – even in adversarial nations such as China – are still able to receive this preferential tax treatment. Meanwhile, China provides preferential tax treatment to investments in China, but not those made in the United States.

At a recent hearing with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, I asked him a few simple questions: Can you think of a reason why the American tax code should provide enormous tax benefits like the capital gains allowance to Americans who invest in Chinese stocks? Don’t we prefer American capital to be invested in America?

To which he replied that while he would never bet against America, those that do, can and should be able to receive tax benefits.

In January, President Trump signed an executive order calling for an America First Trade Policy, but apparently that means America First so long as those who send our capital to China get massive tax breaks.

“The American people deserve a tax code that puts our workers, our industries, and our national interest ahead of foreign profits,” said Congressman Brad Sherman. “If the Trump Administration is serious about an “America First” agenda, it should start by ending tax breaks for those who ship capital—and opportunity—to China.”

Rewarding U.S. investors who invest in Chinese companies that may compete with or even threaten U.S. industries is not strategic. It’s not pro-worker. And it’s certainly not America First.

Last Congress, I introduced the bipartisan No Capital Gains Allowance for American Adversaries Act, which would eliminate the capital gains tax break for investments in companies based in China, Russia, Belarus, Iran, and North Korea. It would also eliminate a related tax break, the “step-up in basis” at death, for investments in such companies, and would direct the SEC to require disclosure that no tax breaks are available for these stocks. I plan to re-introduce this bill this Congress.

Watch my exchange – Here.

See a partial transcript – Here.

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MIL OSI USA News –

May 15, 2025

MIL-OSI: MATTR Announces First Quarter 2025 Results

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

TORONTO, May 14, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Mattr Corp. (“Mattr” or the “Company”) (TSX: MATR) reported today its operational and financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2025. This press release should be read in conjunction with the Company’s Management Discussion and Analysis (“MD&A”) and interim consolidated financial statements for the three months ended March 31, 2025, which are available on the Company’s website and at www.sedarplus.com.

Highlights include¹:

On January 2, 2025, the Company completed its acquisition of AmerCable® Incorporated (“AmerCable”), a U.S. manufacturer of highly engineered wire and cable solutions for the net purchase price of US$283 million, equivalent to approximately CAD $407 million based on the USD-CAD exchange rate as of December 31, 2024 which includes the contractual purchase price, initial working capital adjustments, and US$19.3 million of cash in the business. This transaction is still subject to final net working capital adjustments. AmerCable is now reported under the Company’s Connection Technologies segment;
On a consolidated basis (including Continuing Operations and Discontinued Operations), Mattr reported revenue of $343 million, net income of $53 million, Adjusted EBITDA² of $54 million, diluted Earnings Per Share (“EPS”) of 0.84 and diluted Adjusted EPS² of $0.34. Results are inclusive of Modernization, Expansion and Optimization (“MEO”)² costs of $2.7 million incurred during the quarter;
During the first quarter of 2025, Mattr’s Continuing Operations (including AmerCable) delivered revenue of $320 million, operating income of $18 million and Adjusted EBITDA of $47 million, an 80% increase compared to the first quarter of 2024;
The Connection Technologies segment’s first quarter revenue increased by 106% to $187 million compared to $91 million in the prior year’s quarter. Operating income increased by 24% to $18 million compared to $15 million in the prior year’s quarter and Adjusted EBITDA from the segment was $30 million, a 73% increase compared to the first quarter of 2024;
The Composite Technologies segment’s first quarter revenue increased by 11% to $133 million compared to $119 million in the prior year’s quarter. Operating income increased by 219% to $13 million compared to $4 million in the prior year’s quarter and Adjusted EBITDA from the segment was $21 million, a 40% increase compared to the first quarter of 2024;
During the first quarter of 2025, Discontinued Operations generated revenue of $23 million, operating income of $7 million and Adjusted EBITDA of $7 million; and
During the first quarter of 2025, the Company committed $11.6 million to new capital expenditures while outlaying approximately $24.1 million in cash, including previously accrued amounts, to support long-term growth in its Composite Technologies and Connection Technologies segments. The Company also repurchased approximately 1.0 million of its common shares for a total repurchase price of $11 million under its normal course issuer bid (“NCIB”). Subsequent to the quarter and as of April 30, 2025, the Company has repurchased 313,800 shares for an aggregate repurchase price of approximately $3.0 million.

_{^{______________________________}}^{1. The Company’s consolidated financial statements for the three months ended March 31, 2025, report Continuing Operations as the Company’s Composite Technologies and Connection Technologies reporting segments and Financial and Corporate. Discontinued Operations include Company’s Thermotite business, its final remaining pipe coating business. Total consolidated figures include figures from both Continuing Operations and Discontinued Operations}
^{2. Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA margin, and Adjusted EPS are non-GAAP measures. MEO costs is a supplementary financial measure. Non-GAAP measures and supplementary financial measures do not have standardized meanings prescribed by GAAP and are not necessarily comparable to similar measures provided by other companies. See “Section 5.0 – Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures” for further details and a reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures.}

“The first quarter of 2025 saw Mattr leverage its unique product portfolio to deliver strong business performance despite geopolitically driven uncertainty across many end markets,” said Mike Reeves, Mattr’s President & CEO. “With customer adoption of recently released technologies accelerating, robust performance from AmerCable in its first quarter as a Mattr brand, and newly established manufacturing facilities operating at improved levels of efficiency, Q1 saw meaningful year-over-year expansion of both revenue and Adjusted EBITDA generation within both operating segments.”

“Mattr benefitted modestly during the first quarter from acceleration of purchasing decisions by some customers ahead of early April US tariff announcements. While Mattr’s own USMCA compliant products were not directly impacted by these announcements, the uncertain outlook for global trade and macro-economic conditions has undoubtedly impacted customer confidence across much of the critical infrastructure landscape. Consequently, the Company currently expects demand for its products during the second quarter of 2025, and likely beyond, will be unfavorably impacted. While the full year business impact remains unclear, we currently anticipate the second quarter of 2025 will see Mattr’s revenue and Adjusted EBITDA move lower sequentially.”

Mr. Reeves continued, “While the Company cannot control the business environment within which it operates, in recent history the talented teams across our organization have proven nimble, resilient and cost-conscious in the face of challenging conditions. As demonstrated by our first quarter performance, Mattr’s technology driven products, differentiated positioning in key markets, strong customer value proposition and rebalanced, modernized manufacturing footprint create the opportunity for market outperformance, regardless of prevailing conditions.”

Mr. Reeves concluded, “Our hard-earned balance sheet strength enables Mattr to navigate market uncertainties with confidence, remaining committed to technology development, to enhancing cost and operational efficiency across the organization, to extracting commercial synergies from our newly expanded wire and cable portfolio and to creating long-term value for our shareholders, including via additional accretive acquisitions and the continued repurchase of shares under our NCIB.”

Selected Financial Highlights

		Three Months Ended
		March 31,
		2025		2024
	_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars, except per share amounts and percentages)}	$	%	$		%
	Revenue	320,120		210,039
	Gross Profit	83,618	26%	59,768		28%
	Operating Income from Continuing Operations ^(a)	18,441	6%	4,029		2%
	Net Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations	48,069		(2,145	)
	Net Income (Loss) from Discontinued Operations	4,657		(3,494	)
	Net Income (Loss) for the period	52,726		(5,639	)
	Earnings per share:
	Basic	0.84		(0.09	)
	Diluted	0.84		(0.09	)
	Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations ^(b)	46,554	15%	25,827		12%
	Adjusted EBITDA from Discontinued Operations ^(b)	7,477	32%	4,242		29%
	Total Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA from Operations ^(b)	54,031	16%	30,069		13%
	Total Consolidated Adjusted EPS from Operations ^(b)
	Basic	0.34		0.16
	Diluted	0.34		0.16
^(a)	^{Operating income for the three months ended March 31, 2025, includes no restructuring costs and other net, while operating loss for the three months ended March 31, 2024, includes $3.2 million restructuring costs and other net.}
^(b)	^{Adjusted EBITDA, adjusted EBITDA margins and Adjusted EPS are non-GAAP measures. Non-GAAP measures do not have standardized meanings under GAAP and are not necessarily comparable to similar measures provided by other companies. See “Section 5.0 – Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures” for further details and a reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures.}

1.0 FIRST QUARTER HIGHLIGHTS

On January 2, 2025, the Company, through its subsidiary, successfully completed the acquisition of AmerCable, a U.S.-based manufacturer of highly engineered wire and cable solutions, from Nexans USA Inc. AmerCable has been incorporated into Mattr’s Connection Technologies segment, which is now the largest segment in its portfolio. The Company paid US$283 million, equivalent to approximately CAD $407 million based on the USD-CAD exchange rate as of December 31, 2024 which includes the contractual purchase price, initial working capital adjustments, and US$19.3 million of cash in the business. The final working capital adjustment is anticipated to be completed during the second half of the year.

During the first quarter of 2025, the Company delivered $320.1 million in revenue from Continuing Operations, a $110.1 million or a 52.4% increase from the same quarter of 2024. The Company’s operating income from Continuing Operations in the first quarter of 2025 was $18.4 million, an increase of $14.4 million, or 357.7%, compared to the first quarter of 2024. Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations was $46.6 million during the first quarter of 2025, an increase of $20.7 million, or 80.3%, compared to the first quarter of 2024. These favorable movements as compared to the prior year period were driven by the addition of AmerCable and strong performance across most business lines, despite the economic uncertainties arising from tariff announcements.

The first quarter of 2025 results include $9.5 million in costs associated with the acquisition of AmerCable including the impact of $4.2 million of costs related to the non-cash inventory fair value adjustment, which was part of AmerCable purchase price allocation accounting. The Company’s financial results in the first quarter of 2025 also include the impact of $2.7 million in MEO costs related to the Company’s ongoing MEO strategy and is similar to the $2.7 million of MEO costs recorded in the first quarter of 2024. Additionally, the Company recorded a recovery of $2.2 million in share-based incentive compensation against operating income from Continuing Operations during the first quarter of 2025 driven by the change in the Company’s share price. Comparatively, operating income from Continuing Operations in the prior year’s first quarter included an expense of $7.6 million in share-based incentive compensation.

As at March 31, 2025, the Company had cash and cash equivalents totaling $52.7 million, a decrease from $502.5 million as at December 31, 2024 which included restricted cash. The decrease in cash compared to the year-end 2024 was largely attributable to closing and funding the AmerCable acquisition during the quarter.

Selected Segment Financial Highlights

		Three Months Ended
		March 31,
		2025			2024
	_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars)}	$		%	$		%
	Revenue
	Connection Technologies	187,346			90,757
	Composite Technologies	132,774			119,282
	Revenue from Continuing Operations	320,120			210,039
	Revenue from Discontinued Operations	23,301			14,422
	Operating Income (Loss)
	Connection Technologies	18,041		10%	14,543		16%
	Composite Technologies	12,807		10%	4,017		3%
	Financial and Corporate	(12,407	)		(14,531	)
	Operating Income from Continuing Operations	18,441			4,029
	Operating Income from Discontinued Operations	7,493			3,696
	Adjusted EBITDA ^(a)
	Connection Technologies	30,461		16%	17,617		19%
	Composite Technologies	21,038		16%	15,008		13%
	Financial and Corporate	(4,945	)		(6,798	)
	Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations ^(a)	46,554		15%	25,827		12%
	Adjusted EBITDA from Discontinued Operations ^(a)	7,477		32%	4,242		29%
^a)	^{Adjusted EBITDA is non-GAAP measures. Non-GAAP measures do not have standardized meanings under GAAP and are not necessarily comparable to similar measures provided by other companies. See “Section 5.0 – Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Measures” for further details and a reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures.}

The Connection Technologies segment now includes the Company’s Shawflex, AmerCable and DSG-Canusa business lines, and delivered revenue of $187.3 million in the first quarter of 2025, a new first quarter record and an increase of $96.6 million when compared to the first quarter of 2024. Its operating income in the first quarter of 2025 was $18.0 million compared to $14.5 million in the first quarter of 2024. The segment delivered Adjusted EBITDA of $30.5 million during the first quarter of 2025, a $12.8 million increase versus the prior year quarter. This was the first quarter the Company’s business included AmerCable’s financial results, which significantly contributed to the increased financial performance in the Connection Technologies segment as compared to the first quarter of 2024. The AmerCable business line contributed strong performance across its end markets in the first quarter of 2025, particularly the mining sector. The Connection Technologies segment results include a $4.2 million impact from non-cash inventory fair value adjustment as part of AmerCable purchase price allocation accounting, which is added back for Adjusted EBITDA purposes. The segment successfully completed all expected first-quarter AmerCable business onboarding activities.

Consolidated revenue generation in the segment’s wire and cable businesses (Shawflex and AmerCable) was strongly favorable compared to the prior year, driven primarily by increases in the mining, energy and industrial sectors, partially offset by weaker sales into infrastructure applications, driven by customer project timing.

DSG-Canusa revenue increased marginally compared to the prior year period, primarily driven by higher sales into automotive end markets in North America as the Company gained market share despite a backdrop of reduced global automotive production during the quarter.

Year-over-year increases in segment operating income and Adjusted EBITDA were primarily driven by the addition of AmerCable, partially offset by $2.7 million of non-capitalizable MEO costs associated with the bifurcation and relocation of its North American footprint. This compares to $0.4 million of MEO cost recognized in the prior year period.

The Composite Technologies segment contains the Company’s Flexpipe® and Xerxes® business lines and delivered revenue of $132.8 million in the first quarter of 2025, an increase of $13.5 million, or 11.3%, compared to the first quarter of 2024. Operating income for the segment in the first quarter of 2025 was $12.8 million, an $8.8 million increase from the $4.0 million reported in the first quarter of 2024.

North American Flexpipe revenue increased compared to the same period in the prior year, despite significantly reduced North American completion activity, as the Company continued to secure new customers and further penetrate the large diameter product market. The business also benefitted from some customers accelerating purchases ahead of potential tariff announcements. International revenue was lower year-over-year, primarily due to the timing of orders and deliveries, with the prior-year period benefiting from a significant shipment to the Middle East.

Within Xerxes, first-quarter revenue exceeded the prior-year period, primarily driven by increased sales of Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) tanks for retail fuel applications and Hydrochain products for storm water management applications.

Adjusted EBITDA for the Composite Technologies segment in the first quarter of 2025 was $21.0 million, an increase of $6.0 million from the $15.0 million reported in the first quarter of 2024. This increase was primarily driven by higher gross profit resulting from increased revenue. This was partially offset by a slight decline in gross margin, reflecting a change in product mix and increased freight expenses associated with pre-emptive relocation of inventory into the U.S. to mitigate potential tariff impacts. The segment did not incur any non-capitalizable MEO costs in the first quarter of 2025, as the new production facilities for Flexpipe and Xerxes were fully set up and operational, compared to $2.3 million of MEO costs incurred during the first quarter of 2024 for the setup of these production sites.

Discontinued Operations generated revenue of $23.3 million and $7.5 million of Adjusted EBITDA during the first quarter of 2025 compared to $14.4 million in revenue and $4.2 million of Adjusted EBITDA during the first quarter of 2024.

2.0 OUTLOOK

The Company acknowledges that extreme uncertainty exists regarding the magnitude and duration of tariffs impacting the movement of goods between the US and other countries, and the business and economic consequences arising from such tariffs. The Company currently manufactures products in the US and/or Canada that are sold cross-border in all of its business units and imports raw materials and component parts for the production of its products. The Company also sources raw materials from other countries that are currently subject to or may in the future become subject to tariffs by the United States government. The Company continues to diversify its supply chain and has secured sources based in several different countries for a majority of its raw material needs. The Company remains vigilant and prepared to take additional mitigation actions as needed, including raising the selling prices of its products where necessary and permitted under its contractual arrangements. The related economic uncertainty may also cause customers to pause or cancel investment decisions, which could impact overall near-term demand for the Company’s products in certain end markets. The outlook below includes the Company’s current visibility of the potential impact of tariffs. Despite near and medium term geopolitical and macroeconomic challenges, the Company remains positive on the long-term outlook and macro drivers for its products.

The Company has largely completed its disposition of non-core assets and the modernization, expansion and optimization of its North American production network, with the remaining sale of its Brazilian pipe coating business expected to close around mid 2025 and the relocation of its Shawflex manufacturing site expected to be completed at the end of the second quarter of 2025. MEO costs are expected to be $5 to $7 million in the second quarter and will mark the completion of the MEO expense recognition program by the Company. Consequently, over the course of 2025, Mattr is expected to return to more normalized operations, with a primary focus on delivering value from its restructured operational footprint while also ensuring full integration and optimization of AmerCable following its acquisition.

The Company currently anticipates revenue and Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations in the second quarter of the year to fall below the first quarter of 2025, including the recognition of MEO costs during the second quarter within its Connection Technologies segment. The Company observed some accelerated customer purchasing activity during the first quarter – primarily in its Flexpipe business – as a result of tariff uncertainty, and amid this uncertainty, the Company currently anticipates some customer purchasing decisions in the second quarter and beyond may be delayed or reduced.
The Company currently anticipates sales from its Xerxes fuel and water products in the second quarter of 2025 will rise modestly compared to the first quarter as conditions become more favorable for underground installation activity. Production efficiency from the business’s recently established South Carolina site is expected to evolve favorably over the remainder of 2025.
The Company currently anticipates sales of its Flexpipe products in the second quarter of 2025 will be lower than the first quarter, as modestly higher international shipments and continued North American market share gains are likely offset by further reductions in North American completion activity, driven by tariff uncertainty and lower oil prices. Production efficiency from the business’s recently established Texas site is expected to evolve favorably over the remainder of 2025.
The Company currently anticipates sales of its DSG-Canusa products in the second quarter of 2025 will be similar to the first quarter, as lower activity from its automotive customers is expected to be offset by new customer capture and new product introduction. The production efficiency from the business’s recently established Ohio site is expected to evolve favorably over the remaining course of 2025.
The Company currently anticipates sales of Shawflex and AmerCable wire and cable products in the second quarter of 2025 will decline compared to the first quarter, driven primarily by lower deliveries into specific industrial, mining and energy applications, partially offset by higher deliveries into infrastructure applications. The timing of specific deliveries within the AmerCable business drove a particularly strong result during the first quarter, which is still expected to be the strongest quarter of 2025 for this business. Copper price volatility has also increased since the start of the year and is being closely monitored to ensure the impacts arising from any rapid movements are minimized.
The Company has successfully leveraged Shawflex resources to secure early confirmation of US and Canadian customer appetite to utilize AmerCable’s medium voltage products in specific industrial applications and continues to anticipate initial, modest benefits from these expected industrial sector commercial synergies will commence in the second half of 2025. Key AmerCable related factors impacting Connection Technology segment results to date, and going forward, include:
- The Company incurred approximately $1 million of non-routine onboarding expenses related to the acquisition of AmerCable in the first quarter, and expects additional expenses of up to $4 million over the remainder of 2025. These costs are added back for the calculation of Adjusted EBITDA.
- The revaluation of AmerCable’s inventory to fair value as part of the purchase price allocation accounting is expected to temporarily lower gross margins in the first half of the year as the inventory is sold. These costs are added back for the calculation of Adjusted EBITDA.
- The recognition of intangible assets, including goodwill, customer relationships and trade names as part of the AmerCable purchase price allocation accounting and the corresponding amortization of these assets will impact reported earnings. However, these are non-cash expenses and do not impact the Company’s underlying operational performance or cash flow.

While the Company expects to maintain its “all of the above” approach to capital allocation, with the acquisition of AmerCable and the majority of its large organic MEO projects completed, the Company’s capital deployment in 2025 is expected to focus more heavily on debt repayment and activity under its NCIB. The Company currently anticipates total full year capital expenditures will be $60-$70 million, with approximately $15 million of such amount allocated to maintenance capital, and the remaining amounts allocated to growth projects, including completion of the remaining MEO projects. Given the elevated geopolitical uncertainty, the Company continues to evaluate market conditions and remains prepared to adjust its capital program and spend as needed.
The Company has moved above its normal net-debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA ratio target of 2.0 times, including leases, as a result of its acquisition of AmerCable. Through prioritization of debt repayment, the Company currently expects to move back below its normal target ratio within 12 to 18 months of the acquisition date.

3.0 CONFERENCE CALL AND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Mattr will be hosting a Shareholder and Analyst Conference Call and Webcast on Thursday, May 15th, 2025 at 9:00 AM ET, which will discuss the Company’s First Quarter 2025 Financial Results. To participate via telephone, please register at https://register-conf.media-server.com/register/BI28b49f607d3649d1b1fc5343ae8247b0 and a telephone number and pin will be provided.

Alternatively, please go to the following website address to participate via webcast: https://edge.media-server.com/mmc/p/gd2jsma9. The webcast recording will be available within 24 hours of the live presentation and will be accessible for 90 days.

About Mattr

Mattr is a growth-oriented, global materials technology company broadly serving critical infrastructure markets, including transportation, communication, water management, energy and electrification. The Company operates through a network of fixed manufacturing facilities. Its two business segments, Composite Technologies and Connection Technologies, enable responsible renewal and enhancement of critical infrastructure.

For further information, please contact:

Meghan MacEachern
VP, Investor Relations & External Communications
Tel: 437-341-1848
Email: meghan.maceachern@mattr.com
Website: www.mattr.com

Source: Mattr Corp.
Mattr.ER

4.0 FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

This news release includes certain statements that reflect management’s expectations and objectives for the Company’s future performance, opportunities and growth, which statements constitute “forward-looking information” and “forward-looking statements” (collectively “forward-looking information”) under applicable securities laws. Such statements, other than statements of historical fact, are predictive in nature or depend on future events or conditions. Forward-looking information involves estimates, assumptions, judgements and uncertainties. These statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “may”, “will”, “should”, “anticipate”, “expect”, “believe”, “predict”, “estimate”, “continue”, “intend”, “plan” and variations of these words or other similar expressions.

Specifically, this news release includes forward-looking in-formation in the Outlook Section and elsewhere in respect of, among other things: the ability of the Company to deliver higher returns to all shareholders; the Company’s ability to deliver customer and shareholder value expansion; the expected timing for the closing of the sale of Thermotite; the gross sale proceeds of the sale of Thermotite; the anticipated timing for the final working capital adjustment for the AmerCable acquisition; the expected timing of the relocation of the Shawflex manufacturing site; the expected amount of MEO costs to be incurred in the second quarter of 2025; the expected completion of the MEO expense recognition program; the return to more normalized operations in the remainder of 2025; the decline in consolidated revenue and Adjusted EBITDA in the second quarter of 2025; the anticipated customer purchasing decisions in the second quarter of 2025 and beyond; the impact of tariffs implemented by the U.S. administration, including on the demand for the Company’s products in the second quarter of 2025 and beyond; increased sales from Xerxes fuel and water products in the second quarter of 2025; sales of Flexpipe products in the second quarter of 2025; the volume of sales of Shawflex, AmerCable and DSG-Canusa products in the second quarter of 2025; the impact of new DSG-Canusa product introduction; the impact of lower activity of automotive customers; the level of efficiency in the Company’s recently established production facilities, including the Xerxes South Carolina facility, the Flexpipe Texas facility, and the DSG-Canusa Ohio facility; the Company’s approach to capital allocation and expected capital deployment, including debt repayment and activity under the Company’s normal course issuer bid (“NCIB”).

Forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted by the forward-looking information. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information as a number of factors could cause actual events, results and prospects to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking information. Significant risks facing the Company include but are not limited to the risks and uncertainties described in the Company’s Management’s Discussion and Analysis under “Risks and Uncertainties” and in the Company’s Annual Information Form (“AIF”) under “Risk Factors”.

These statements of forward-looking information are based on assumptions, estimates and analysis made by management in light of its experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments as well as other factors believed to be reasonable and relevant in the circumstances. These assumptions include those in respect of: the scale and duration of North American trade tariffs; expectations for demand for the Company’s products; sales trends for the Company’s products; North American onshore oilfield customer spending; the Company’s ability to increase efficiency in its newly established manufacturing facilities; the effectiveness of modernization, expansion and optimization efforts; the Company’s cash flow generation and growth outlook; activity levels across the Company’s business segments; the Company’s ability to manage supply chain disruptions and other business impacts caused by, among other things, current or future geopolitical events, conflicts, or disruptions, such as the conflict in Ukraine and related sanctions on Russia; the impact of the Russia and Ukraine conflict on the Company’s demand for products and the strength of its and its customers supply chains; the current Israel-Palestine conflict; the impact of changing interest rates and levels of inflation; regular, seasonal impacts on the Company’s businesses, including in the fiberglass reinforced plastic (“FRP”) tanks business and composite pipe business; expectations regarding the Company’s ability to attract new customers and develop and maintain relationships with existing customers; the continued availability of funding required to meet the Company’s anticipated operating and capital expenditure requirements over time; consistent competitive intensity in the business in which the Company operates; no significant or unexpected legal or regulatory developments, other shifts in economic conditions, or macro changes in the competitive environment affecting the Company’s business activities; key interest rates remaining relatively stable through the remainder of 2025; the accuracy of the forecast data from the Company’s North American convenience store customers; the accuracy of market indicators in determining industry health for AmerCable’s products, such as commodity prices, housing starts, and GDP; the impact of federal stimulus packages in the Connection Technologies reporting segment; heightened demand for electric and hybrid vehicles and for electronic content within those vehicles particularly in the Asia Pacific, Europe and Africa regions; heightened infrastructure spending in Canada, including in respect of commercial and municipal water projects, nuclear plant refurbishment and upgraded communication and transportation networks, communication networks and nuclear refurbishments; sustained health of oil and gas producers; the continued global need to renew and expand critical infrastructure, including energy generation and distribution, electrification, transportation network enhancement and storm management; the Company’s ability to execute projects under contract; the Company’s continuing ability to provide new and enhanced product offerings to its customers; that the Company will identify and successfully execute on opportunities for acquisitions or investments; the higher level of investment in working capital by the Company; the easing of supply chain shortages and the continued supply of and stable pricing or the ability to pass on higher prices to the Company’s customers for commodities used by the Company; the availability of personnel resources sufficient for the Company to operate its businesses; the maintenance of operations by the Company in major oil and gas producing regions; the adequacy of the Company’s existing accruals in respect of environmental compliance and in respect of litigation and tax matters and other claims generally; the impact of adoption of artificial intelligence and other machine learning on competition in the industries which the Company operates; the Company’s ability to meet its financial objectives; the ability of the Company to satisfy all covenants under its Credit Facility (as defined herein) and other debt obligations and having sufficient liquidity to fund its obligations and planned initiatives; and the availability, commercial viability and scalability of the Company’s greenhouse gas emission reduction strategies and related technology and products, and the anticipated costs and impacts on the Company’s operations and financial results of adopting these technologies or strategies. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are based on reasonable assumptions in light of currently available information. However, should one or more risks materialize, or should any assumptions prove incorrect, then actual results could vary materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking information included in this news release and the Company can give no assurance that such expectations will be achieved.

When considering the forward-looking information in making decisions with respect to the Company, readers should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. The Company does not assume the obligation to revise or update forward-looking information after the date of this news release or to revise it to reflect the occurrence of future unanticipated events, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.

To the extent any forward-looking information in this news release constitutes future oriented financial information or financial outlooks, within the meaning of securities laws, such information is being provided to demonstrate the potential of the Company and readers are cautioned that this information may not be appropriate for any other purpose. Future oriented financial information and financial outlooks, as with forward-looking information generally, are based on the assumptions and subject to the risks noted above.

5.0 RECONCILIATION OF NON-GAAP MEASURES

The Company reports on certain non-GAAP and other financial measures that are used to evaluate its performance and segments, as well as to determine compliance with debt covenants and to manage its capital structure. These non-GAAP and other financial measures do not have standardized meanings under IFRS and are not necessarily comparable to similar measures provided by other companies. The Company discloses these measures because it believes that they provide further information and assist readers in understanding the results of the Company’s operations and financial position. These measures should not be considered in isolation or used in substitution for other measures of performance prepared in accordance with GAAP. The following is a reconciliation of the non-GAAP measures reported by the Company.

EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA

EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure defined as earnings before interest, income taxes, depreciation and amortization. Adjusted EBITDA is also a non-GAAP measure defined as EBITDA adjusted for items which do not impact day to day operations. Adjusted EBITDA is calculated by adding back to EBITDA the sum of impairments, costs associated with refinancing of long-term debt and credit facilities, gain on sale of land and other, gain on sale of investment in associates, gain on sale of operating unit, acquisition costs, restructuring costs, share-based incentive compensation cost, foreign exchange (gain) loss and other, net, hyperinflationary adjustments and the impact of transactions that are outside the Company’s normal course of business or day to day operations. The Company believes that EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are useful supplemental measures that provide a meaningful indication of the Company’s results from principal business activities prior to the consideration of how these activities are financed or the tax impacts in various jurisdictions and for comparing its operating performance with the performance of other companies that have different financing, capital or tax structures. The Company presents Adjusted EBITDA as a measure of EBITDA that excludes the effect of transactions that fall outside the Company’s ordinary course of business or routine operations. Adjusted EBITDA is used by many analysts as one of several important analytical tools to evaluate financial performance and is a key metric in business valuations. It is also considered important by lenders to the Company and is included in the financial covenants of the Credit Facility.

		Three Months Ended
			March 31,			March 31,
	_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars)}		2025			2024

	Net Income (Loss) from Continuing Operations	$	48,069		$	(2,145	)

	Add:
	Income tax expense		(38,858	)		3,948
	Finance costs, net		9,230			2,226
	Amortization of property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and ROU assets		16,883			8,568
	EBITDA from Continuing Operations		35,324			12,597

	Share-based incentive compensation (recovery) cost		(2,192	)		7,632
	Foreign exchange loss		3,907			2,397
	Restructuring costs and other, net		—			3,201
	Cost associated with acquisition ^(a)		5,320			—
	Non-cash impact from inventory fair value adjustment ^(b)		4,195			—
	Adjusted EBITDA from Continuing Operations	$	46,554		$	25,827
^a)	^{Costs associated with the acquisition of AmerCable Incorporated.}
^b)	^{Cost of goods sold impact from purchase price allocation accounting adjustment on acquired inventory from AmerCable acquisition.}

Connection Technologies Segment

		Three Months Ended
			March 31,			March 31,
	_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars)}		2025			2024

	Operating Income	$	18,041		$	14,543

	Add:
	Amortization of property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and ROU assets		7,619			1,722
	EBITDA		25,660			16,265

	Share-based incentive compensation (recovery) cost		(368	)		1,319
	Restructuring costs and other, net		—			33
	Cost associated with acquisition ^(a)		974			—
	Non-cash impact from inventory fair value adjustment ^(b)		4,195			—
	Adjusted EBITDA	$	30,461		$	17,617
^a)	^{Costs associated with the acquisition of AmerCable Incorporated.}
^b)	^{Cost of goods sold impact from purchase price allocation accounting adjustment on acquired inventory from AmerCable acquisition.}

Composite Technologies Segment

		Three Months Ended
			March 31,			March 31,
	_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars)}		2025			2024

	Operating Income	$	12,807		$	4,017

	Add:
	Amortization of property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and ROU assets		8,667			6,371
	EBITDA		21,474			10,388

	Share-based incentive compensation (recovery) cost		(436	)		1,452
	Restructuring costs and other, net		—			3,168
	Adjusted EBITDA	$	21,038		$	15,008

Financial and Corporate

		Three Months Ended
			March 31,			March 31,
	_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars)}		2025			2024

	Operating Loss	$	(12,407	)	$	(14,531	)

	Add:
	Cost associated with repayment and modification of long-term debt		—			—
	Amortization of property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and ROU assets		597			475
	EBITDA		(11,810	)		(14,056	)

	Share-based incentive compensation (recovery) cost		(1,388	)		4,861
	Foreign exchange loss		3,907			2,397
	Cost associated with acquisition ^(a)		4,346			—
	Adjusted EBITDA	$	(4,945	)	$	(6,798	)
^a)	^{Costs associated with the acquisition of AmerCable Incorporated.}

Discontinued Operations

		Three Months Ended
			March 31,			March 31,
	_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars)}		2025			2024

	Net Income (Loss) from Discontinued Operations	$	4,657		$	(3,494	)

	Add:
	Income tax (recovery) expense		2,998			1,869
	Finance costs, net recovery		(162	)		(84	)
	Amortization of property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and ROU assets		—			428
	EBITDA from Discontinued Operations		7,493			(1,281	)

	Foreign exchange (gain) loss		(16	)		118
	Loss on sale of operating unit and subsidiary		—			5,405
	Adjusted EBITDA from Discontinued Operations	$	7,477		$	4,242

Total Consolidated Mattr (Continuing and Discontinued Operations)

		Three Months Ended
			March 31,			March 31,
	_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars)}		2025			2024

	Net Income (Loss)	$	52,726		$	(5,639	)

	Add:
	Income tax expense		(35,860	)		5,817
	Finance costs, net		9,068			2,142
	Amortization of property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and ROU assets		16,883			8,996
	EBITDA		42,817			11,316

	Share-based incentive compensation (recovery) cost		(2,192	)		7,632
	Foreign exchange loss		3,891			2,515
	Loss on sale of operating unit and subsidiary		—			5,405
	Restructuring costs and other, net		—			3,201
	Cost associated with acquisition ^(a)		5,320			—
	Non-cash impact from inventory fair value adjustment ^(b)		4,195			—
	Adjusted EBITDA	$	54,031		$	30,069
^a)	^{Costs associated with the acquisition of AmerCable Incorporated.}
^b)	^{Cost of goods sold impact from purchase price allocation accounting adjustment on acquired inventory from AmerCable acquisition.}

Adjusted EBITDA Margin

Adjusted EBITDA margin is defined as Adjusted EBITDA divided by revenue and is a non-GAAP measure. The Company believes that Adjusted EBITDA margin is a useful supplemental measure that provides meaningful assessment of the business results of the Company and its Operating Segments from principal business activities excluding the impact of transactions that are outside of the Company’s normal course of business.

See reconciliation above for the changes in composition of Adjusted EBITDA, as a result of which the table below reflects restated figures for the prior year quarter to align with the updated composition.

Operating margin is defined as operating (loss) income divided by revenue and is a non-GAAP measure. The Company believes that operating margin is a useful supplemental measure that provides meaningful assessment of the business performance of the Company and its Operating Segments. The Company uses this measure as a key indicator of financial performance, operating efficiency and cost control based on volume of business generated.

Adjusted Net Income (attributable to shareholders)

Adjusted Net Income (attributable to shareholders) is a non-GAAP measure defined as Net Income (attributable to shareholders) adjusted for items which do not impact day to day operations. Adjusted Net Income (attributable to shareholders) is calculated by adding back to Net Income (attributable to shareholders) the after tax impact of the sum of impairments, costs associated with refinancing of long-term debt and credit facilities, gain on sale of land and other, gain on sale of investment in associates, gain on sale of operating unit, acquisition costs, restructuring costs, share-based incentive compensation cost, foreign exchange (gain) loss and other, net and hyperinflationary adjustments. The Company believes that Adjusted Net Income (attributable to shareholders) is a useful supplemental measure that provides a meaningful indication of the Company’s results from principal business activities for comparing its operating performance with the performance of other companies that have different financing, capital or tax structures.

Adjusted Earnings Per Share (“Adjusted EPS”)

Adjusted EPS (basic) is a non-GAAP measure defined as Adjusted Net Income (attributable to shareholders) divided by the number of common shares outstanding. Adjusted EPS (diluted) is a non-GAAP measure defined as Adjusted Net Income (attributable to shareholders) divided by the number of common shares outstanding, further adjusted for potential dilutive impacts of outstanding securities which are convertible to common shares. The Company presents Adjusted EPS as a measure of Earning Per Share that excludes the impact of transactions that are outside the Company’s normal course of business or day to day operations. Adjusted EPS indicates the amount of Adjusted Net Income the Company makes for each share of its stock and is used by many analysts as one of several important analytical tools to evaluate financial performance and is a key metric in business valuations.

Total Consolidated Mattr Adjusted EPS (Continuing and Discontinued Operations)

Three Months Ended

March 31,

_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars except for per share amounts)}

2025

2024

Earnings Per Share

Basic

Diluted

Basic

Diluted

Total Consolidated Mattr Net Income (Loss)^(a)

52,726

0.84

(5,842

)

(0.09

)

(0.09

)

Adjustments (before tax):

Share-based incentive compensation (recovery) cost

(2,192

)

7,632

Foreign exchange loss

3,891

2,515

Loss on sale of operating unit and subsidiary

—

5,405

Restructuring costs and other, net

—

3,201

Cost associated with acquisition ^(b)

5,320

—

Non-cash impact from inventory fair value adjustment ^(c)

4,195

—

Tax effect of above adjustments

(1,499

)

(2,066

)

Tax impact of the AmerCable acquisition

(40,819

)

—

Total Consolidated Mattr Adjusted Net Income (non-GAAP) ^(a)

21,622

0.34

10,845

0.16

^(a)

^{Attributable to Shareholders of the Company.}

^(b)

^{One-time costs associated with the acquisition of AmerCable Incorporated.}

^(c)

^{One-time cost of goods sold impact from purchase price allocation accounting adjustment on acquired inventory from AmerCable acquisition.}

Total Net debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA

Total Net debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure defined as the sum of long-term debt, current lease liabilities and long-term lease liabilities, less cash and cash equivalents (including restricted cash), divided by the Consolidated (Continuing and Discontinued Operations) Adjusted EBITDA, as defined above, for the trailing twelve-month period. The Company believes Total Net debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA is a useful supplementary measure to assess the borrowing capacity of the Company. Total Net debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA is used by many analysts as one of several important analytical tools to evaluate how long a company would need to operate at its current level to pay of all its debt. It is also considered important by credit rating agencies to determine the probability of a company defaulting on its debt.

See discussion above for the changes into the composition of Adjusted EBITDA. The table below reflects restated figures for the prior year quarters to align with current presentation.

		March 31,		December 31
_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars except Net debt-to-EBITDA ratio)}		2025			2024

Long-term debt	$	449,633		$	471,238
Lease Liabilities		165,869			163,127
Cash and cash equivalents (and restricted cash)		(52,716	)		(502,490	)
Total Net Debt		562,786			131,875

Q1 2024 Adjusted EBITDA		—			30,069
Q2 2024 Adjusted EBITDA		42,824			42,824
Q3 2024 Adjusted EBITDA		36,743			36,743
Q4 2024 Adjusted EBITDA		21,060			21,060
Q1 2025 Adjusted EBITDA		54,031			—
Trailing twelve-month Adjusted EBITDA	$	154,658		$	130,696
Total Net debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA		3.64			1.01

Total Interest Coverage Ratio

Total Interest Coverage Ratio is a non-GAAP measure defined as Consolidated Adjusted EBITDA (Continuing and Discontinued Operations), as defined above, for the trailing twelve-month period, divided by finance costs, net, for the trailing twelve-month period. The Company believes Total Interest Coverage Ratio is a useful supplementary measure to assess the Company’s ability to honor its debt payments. Total Interest Coverage Ratio is used by many analysts as one of several important analytical tools to judge a company’s ability to pay interest on its outstanding debt. It is also considered important by credit rating agencies to determine a company’s riskiness relative to its current debt or for future borrowing.

		March 31,	December 31
_{(in thousands of Canadian dollars except Net debt-to-EBITDA ratio)}		2025		2024

Q1 2024 Adjusted EBITDA	$	—	$	30,069
Q2 2024 Adjusted EBITDA		42,824		42,824
Q3 2024 Adjusted EBITDA		36,743		36,743
Q4 2024 Adjusted EBITDA		21,060		21,060
Q1 2025 Adjusted EBITDA		54,031		—
Trailing twelve-month Adjusted EBITDA	$	154,658	$	130,696

Q1 2024 Finance cost, net		—		2,142
Q2 2024 Finance cost, net		4,341		4,341
Q3 2024 Finance cost, net		4,804		4,804
Q4 2024 Finance cost, net		5,846		5,846
Q1 2025 Finance cost, net		9,068		—
Trailing twelve-month finance cost, net	$	24,059	$	17,133
Total Interest Coverage Ratio		6.43		7.63

Modernization, Expansion and Optimization (“MEO”) Costs

MEO costs is a supplementary financial measure. MEO costs not eligible for capitalization are reported as selling, general and administrative expenses or as cost of goods sold and incurred in support of the Company’s certain specific, planned capital investments into high-return growth and efficiency improvement opportunities. These include the following:

The replacement of the Company’s Rexdale facility in Toronto, Ontario and the expansion of its Connection Technologies segment’s North American manufacturing footprint through:
- a new heat-shrink tubing production site in Fairfield, Ohio; and
- a new wire and cable production site in Vaughan, Ontario.
The addition of two new manufacturing facilities and the elimination of aging manufacturing facilities within the Composite Technologies network, namely:
- the shut-down and exit of aging production capabilities in the Xerxes FRP tank production site footprint;
- a new Xerxes FRP tank production site in Blythewood, South Carolina;
- a new Flexpipe composite pipe production site in Rockwall, Texas along with the co-located Hydrochain™ stormwater infiltration chamber production line.

The Company considers these costs incremental to its normal operating base and would not have been incurred if these projects were not ongoing.

6.0 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Additional information relating to the Company, including its AIF, is available on SEDAR+ at www. sedarplus.com and on the “Investors Centre” page of the Company’s website at: https://investors.Mattr.com/Investor-Center/default.aspx.

Dated: May 14, 2025

The MIL Network –

May 15, 2025

MIL-OSI Russia: IMF Executive Board Receives Request for Flexible Credit Line Arrangement with Costa Rica

Source: IMF – News in Russian

May 14, 2025

Washington, DC: After concluding the 2025 Article IV consultation with Costa Rica on May 12, 2025, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Executive Board met on the same day in an informal session^[1] to discuss a request from the authorities for a two-year arrangement under the Flexible Credit Line (FCL) with the IMF in an amount equivalent to SDR 1.1082 billion (300 percent of quota or about US$1.5 billion). The authorities intend to treat the credit line as precautionary.

The FCL is reserved for countries with very strong policy frameworks and track records in economic performance. It helps safeguard countries by providing them with upfront access to IMF resources in case needed if future external shocks materialize. The FCL also permits qualifying countries to signal continued commitment to very strong institutional frameworks and macroeconomic and financial policies. Unlike the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement, which the authorities completed in 2024, the FCL has no ex-post conditionality.

On the basis of Costa Rica’s very strong economic fundamentals, institutional policy frameworks, and track record, IIMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva intends to recommend approval of the FCL arrangement for Costa Rica when the IMF Executive Board meets again to take a decision in the following weeks. The IMF stands ready to continue its fruitful engagement with Costa Rica.

^[1] During an informal session, IMF staff engages with Executive Board Members to discuss country matters where no formal board decision is expected.

IMF Communications Department

MEDIA RELATIONS

PRESS OFFICER: Meera Louis

Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org

@IMFSpokesperson

https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2025/05/14/pr25146-costa-rica-imf-receives-request-for-fcl-arrangement

MIL OSI

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: China Internet Civilization Conference to Focus on Young Netizens, Digital Literacy

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) — The 2025 China Internet Civilization Conference will be held from June 10 to 11 in Hefei, east China’s Anhui Province. The event will focus on building a cyber civilization among young netizens and improving the nation’s digital literacy, organizers said Wednesday.

As Yang Jianwen, deputy director of the Office of the Central Cyberspace Commission and the State Internet Information Office of the People’s Republic of China, noted at a press conference in Beijing, the program of the two-day conference, themed “Accumulating the Positive Energy of the Internet and Shaping New Trends of the Era,” will include a grand opening ceremony, a main forum, 14 sub-forums and a series of thematic events designed to showcase scientific and technological achievements and innovations.

The event will also feature a number of new achievements in the field of building a cyber civilization.

Young Chinese Internet users, whose number has now reached about 540 million, are an important force in the formation of cyber civilization, Yang Jianwen emphasized, adding that an initiative to develop a youth Internet civilization is planned to be announced during the main forum.

The conference is held by the Office of the Central Cyberspace Commission and the Office of the CPC Central Committee for Spiritual Culture, jointly with the Party Committee and the People’s Government of Anhui Province. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: World Conference on Digital Education 2025 Opens in Wuhan

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

WUHAN, May 14 (Xinhua) — The 2025 World Conference on Digital Education kicked off Wednesday in Wuhan, central China’s Hubei Province. Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang attended the opening ceremony and delivered a speech.

As Ding Xuexiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee, emphasized, China pays close attention to the development of digital education.

According to him, China, which is currently accelerating the construction of an educational power, will consistently promote digital transformation and intelligent upgrading of the education sector.

Ding Xuexiang said that China is building a modern digital education system that is more equitable, has higher quality and intellectualization, and provides universal lifelong learning for the entire population.

The Chinese vice premier called for harnessing the momentum of education development in the age of intelligence, deepening international cooperation in digital education, and accelerating the implementation of the UN Global Digital Compact.

The 2025 Global Conference on Digital Education on “Education Development and Transformation: The Age of Intelligence” will run until May 16.

The opening ceremony of the event was attended by more than 600 people, including officials from Chinese and foreign governments, heads of relevant international organizations, representatives from universities, primary and secondary schools, as well as experts and scholars. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: China suspends designation of several US companies and export restrictions against them

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) — China on Wednesday suspended the designation of several U.S. companies as unreliable entities and the application of export restrictions against them, the Ministry of Commerce said.

In response to media questions, the agency’s official representative said that the measure announced on April 4 to include 11 American companies in China’s list of unreliable entities has been suspended for 90 days.

The April 9 move to add six more U.S. companies to the list of untrustworthy entities has also been suspended, and Chinese businesses are now allowed to apply to do business with those companies, the spokesman said.

In addition, China has suspended for 90 days the export control measures that placed 28 U.S. companies on the export control list on April 4 and 9, the Commerce Department official added.

In the event that exporters need to supply dual-use goods to the above-mentioned 28 companies, they must submit an application to the Ministry of Commerce in accordance with current regulations. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Chinese Foreign Minister Meets with New Sudanese Foreign Minister

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Omer Mohamed Ahmed Siddig, Sudan’s outgoing ambassador to China and new foreign minister, in Beijing on Wednesday.

Wang Yi, also a member of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee, congratulated O. M. A. Siddig on his appointment as Sudanese Foreign Minister and expressed gratitude for his contribution to the development of China-Sudan relations during his time as ambassador to China.

Noting that this year marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of strategic partnership between China and Sudan, Wang called on the two sides to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state and promote continuous fruitful results in bilateral relations to benefit the peoples of both countries.

The Chinese diplomat stressed that China firmly supports Sudan in protecting its sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity, as well as in achieving peace, stability and development as soon as possible. China will continue to provide Sudan with feasible humanitarian assistance, the Chinese Foreign Minister added.

O. M. A. Siddig, in turn, said that Sudan regards China as its most important partner and reliable friend, prioritizes cooperation with it, and will continue to firmly support the country in protecting its core interests. As Foreign Minister, he promised to make every effort to develop the strategic partnership between Sudan and China and to jointly implement important global initiatives put forward by China. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Peruvian President Appoints E. Arana as New Prime Minister

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

LIMA, May 14 (Xinhua) — Peruvian President Dina Boluarte on Wednesday appointed former Justice Minister Eduardo Arana as the country’s new prime minister following the resignation of Gustavo Adriaenssen.

When asked by D. Boluarte during the oath taking session, “Do you swear before God and the Fatherland to conscientiously and faithfully fulfill the duties of Prime Minister, without engaging in corruption?” E. Arana replied, “I swear.”

Peru’s president then swore in new cabinet members who will serve with her until her term ends next year. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025

MIL-OSI: Snail, Inc. Reports First Quarter 2025 Financial Results

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

CULVER CITY, Calif., May 14, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Snail, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNAL) (“Snail Games” or the “Company”), a leading global independent developer and publisher of interactive digital entertainment, today announced financial results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2025.

First Quarter 2025 and Recent Operational Highlights

ARK Franchise Updates:

ARK: Survival Evolved (“ASE”):
- Units sold were approximately 690,775 for the first quarter 2025
- Revealed teaser trailer for ARK: Aquatica, a new in-house developed downloadable content (“DLC”) expansion map for ASE
ARK: Survival Ascended (“ASA”):
- Units sold were approximately 751,960 for the first quarter 2025
- Launched the Astraeos Map as an Official Partner DLC for ASA
- Revealed the official trailer for ARK: Lost Colony, the next DLC for ASA produced by Studio Wildcard
ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition (“ARK Mobile”) :
- Surpassed 4.8 million downloads as of March 31, 2025
- Launched the Ragnarok expansion map and the Extinction map
- In the three months ended March 31, 2025, average DAUs totaled 143,976

Game Portfolio Updates:

Debuted teaser trailers for two in-house developed projects, Nine Yin Sutra: Wushu and Nine Yin Sutra: Immortal
Launched new trailers for upcoming games: For The Stars, Honeycomb: The World Beyond, Robots at Midnight, and Echoes of Elysium
Celebrated Bellwright’s one-year Early Access anniversary in April 2025 and introduced major update with significant content and player-requested features. Bellwright will be making its way to Xbox
Launched The Cecil: The Journey Begins and Chasmal Fear
Company indie publishing label, Wandering Wizards, acquired publishing rights to Whispers of West Grove

Business Updates:

Company subsidiary Interactive Films LLC (“Interactive Films”) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”) with Mega Matrix Inc. (“MPU”) for the joint development, production, and global distribution of short dramas

Management Commentary

Company co-Chief Executive Officer Tony Tian commented: “The first quarter saw sustained growth and strong engagement across our ARK franchise. Our ARK franchise had an increase in daily active users in the first quarter of 2025 of approximately 16%, up to 243,000 on the Steam and Epic platforms, when compared to the same period in 2024. We unveiled and released new maps and DLCs for ASE, ASA, and our mobile title, delivering fresh, immersive experiences that continue to expand the ARK universe and deepen player engagement. ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition maintained strong momentum since launch last quarter, a promising indicator of our ongoing efforts to broaden ARK’s audience. The mobile platform removes hardware barriers, opening the franchise to a new and growing player base. In February, we participated in GDC, where we unveiled a series of new trailers, announcements, and upcoming content for the ARK franchise and our broader game portfolio.”

“Next month marks a major milestone: the 10-year anniversary of ASE. This pivotal moment for Snail Games offers an opportunity to celebrate the franchise’s legacy and community. Beyond gaming, we also signed a MoU with Mega Matrix to co-develop at least 10 short dramas. In support of this initiative, we soft-launched Salty TV, our mobile short film platform, last quarter, which currently hosts 49 short dramas. We look forward to finalizing the agreement and working closely with the MPU team to deliver high-quality entertainment content. As we look to the remainder of 2025, our focus remains on expanding global reach, investing in scalable growth, commemorating ARK’s 10-year journey, and continuing to deliver innovative experiences that engage players and audiences across multiple platforms and genres.”

First Quarter 2025 Financial Highlights

Net revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2025, increased 42.5% to $20.1 million compared to $14.1 million in the same period last year. The increase was primarily due to an increase in total ARK sales of $2.7 million, an increase in ARK Mobile sales of $1.3 million that was driven by the release of ARK: Ultimate Mobile Edition, and the Company deferring $3.3 million less of its sales during the three months ended March 31, 2025 than it deferred in the same period last year, partially offset by a decrease in revenues related to other games of $1.6 million.

Net loss for the three months ended March 31, 2025, was $(1.9) million compared to $(1.8) million in the same period last year; as a result of the aforementioned increase in net revenue offset by increases in the costs of revenues and operating expenses – a result of the Company’s increased headcount, research and development, and marketing expenses.

Bookings for the three months ended March 31, 2025, increased 13.6% to $22.2 million compared to $19.6 million in the same period last year. The increase was primarily due to the releases of ARK: Survival Ascended DLC Astraeos in the first quarter of 2025, the releases of Bobs Tall Tales, and Bellwright in the latter quarters of 2024.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”) for the three months ended March 31, 2025, was $(3.2) million compared to $(1.9) million in the same period last year. The decrease was primarily due to an increase in benefit from income taxes of $1.0 million, a decrease in interest expense of $0.3 million, and an increase in net loss of $0.1 million, partially offset by a decrease in interest income and interest income – related parties of $0.1 million.

As of March 31, 2025, unrestricted cash was $9.4 million compared to $7.3 million as of December 31, 2024.

Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures

In addition to the financial results determined in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, Snail believes Bookings and EBITDA, as non-GAAP measures, are useful in evaluating its operating performance. Bookings and EBITDA are non-GAAP financial measures that are presented as supplemental disclosures and should not be construed as alternatives to net income (loss) or revenue as indicators of operating performance, nor as alternatives to cash flow provided by operating activities as measures of liquidity, both as determined in accordance with GAAP. Snail supplementally presents Bookings and EBITDA because they are key operating measures used by management to assess financial performance. Bookings adjusts for the impact of deferrals and, Snail believes, provides a useful indicator of sales in a given period. EBITDA adjusts for items that Snail believes do not reflect the ongoing operating performance of its business, such as certain non-cash items, unusual or infrequent items or items that change from period to period without any material relevance to its operating performance. Management believes Bookings and EBITDA are useful to investors and analysts in highlighting trends in Snail’s operating performance, while other measures can differ significantly depending on long-term strategic decisions regarding capital structure, the tax jurisdictions in which Snail operates and capital investments.

Bookings is defined as the net amount of products and services sold digitally or physically in the period. Bookings is equal to revenues, excluding the impact from deferrals. Below is a reconciliation of total net revenue to Bookings, the closest GAAP financial measure.

	Three months ended March 31,
	2025		2024
	(in millions)
Total net revenue	$	20.1	$	14.1
Change in deferred net revenue		2.1		5.5
Bookings	$	22.2	$	19.6

We define EBITDA as net loss before (i) interest expense, (ii) interest income, (iii) benefit from income taxes and (iv) depreciation expense. The following table provides a reconciliation from net loss to EBITDA:

	Three months ended March 31,
	2025			2024
	(in millions)
Net loss	$	(1.9	)	$	(1.8	)
Interest income and interest income - related parties		–			(0.1	)
Interest expense		0.1			0.4
Benefit from income taxes		(1.5	)		(0.5	)
Depreciation expense		0.1			0.1
EBITDA	$	(3.2	)	$	(1.9	)

Webcast Details

The Company will host a webcast at 4:30 PM ET today to discuss the first quarter 2025 financial results. Participants may access the live webcast and replay via the link here or on the Company’s investor relations website at https://investor.snail.com/.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains statements that constitute forward-looking statements. Many of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “could,” “expect,” “should,” “plan,” “intend,” “may,” “predict,” “continue,” “estimate” and “potential,” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements appear in a number of places in this press release and include, but are not limited to, statements regarding Snail’s intent, belief or current expectations. These forward-looking statements include information about possible or assumed future results of Snail’s business, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity, plans and objectives. The statements Snail makes regarding the following matters are forward-looking by their nature: growth prospects and strategies; launching new games and additional functionality to games that are commercially successful; expectations regarding significant drivers of future growth; its ability to retain and increase its player base and develop new video games and enhance existing games; competition from companies in a number of industries, including other casual game developers and publishers and both large and small, public and private Internet companies; its ability to attract and retain a qualified management team and other team members while controlling its labor costs; its relationships with third-party platforms such as Xbox Live and Game Pass, PlayStation Network, Steam, Epic Games Store, My Nintendo Store, the Apple App Store, the Google Play Store and the Amazon Appstore; the size of addressable markets, market share and market trends; its ability to successfully enter new markets and manage international expansion; protecting and developing its brand and intellectual property portfolio; costs associated with defending intellectual property infringement and other claims; future business development, results of operations and financial condition; the ongoing conflicts involving Russia and Ukraine, and Israel and Hamas, on its business and the global economy generally; actions in various countries, particularly in China and the United States, have created uncertainty with respect to tariff impacts on the costs of our merchandise and costs of development; rulings by courts or other governmental authorities; the Company’s current program to repurchase shares of its Class A common stock, including expectations regarding the timing and manner of repurchases made under this share repurchase program; its plans to pursue and successfully integrate strategic acquisitions; and assumptions underlying any of the foregoing.

Further information on risks, uncertainties and other factors that could affect Snail’s financial results are included in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) from time to time, including its annual reports on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed, or to be filed, with the SEC. You should not rely on these forward-looking statements, as actual outcomes and results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements as a result of such risks and uncertainties. All forward-looking statements in this press release are based on management’s beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to Snail, and Snail does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements provided to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made.

About Snail, Inc.

Snail, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNAL) is a leading, global independent developer and publisher of interactive digital entertainment for consumers around the world, with a premier portfolio of premium games designed for use on a variety of platforms, including consoles, PCs, and mobile devices. For more information, please visit: https://snail.com/.

Investor Contact:

John Yi and Steven Shinmachi
Gateway Group, Inc.
949-574-3860
SNAL@gateway-grp.com

Snail, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of March 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024 (Unaudited)
	*March 31, 2025*			*December 31, 2024*

ASSETS

Current Assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	9,359,116		$	7,303,944
Accounts receivable, net of allowances for credit losses of $523,500 as of March 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024		9,118,269			9,814,822
Accounts receivable – related party		1,332,867			2,336,274
Loan and interest receivable – related party		106,252			105,759
Prepaid expenses – related party		2,536,748			2,521,291
Prepaid expenses and other current assets		1,468,062			1,846,024
Prepaid taxes		7,174,973			7,318,424
Total current assets		31,096,287			31,246,538

Restricted cash and cash equivalents		935,000			935,000
Accounts receivable – related party, net of current portion		592			1,500,592
Prepaid expenses – related party, net of current portion		9,907,669			9,378,594
Property and equipment, net		4,310,448			4,378,352
Intangible assets, net		2,159,141			973,914
Deferred income taxes		12,852,299			10,817,112
Other noncurrent assets		2,282,709			1,683,932
Operating lease right-of-use assets, net		953,082			1,279,330
Total assets	$	64,497,227		$	62,193,364

LIABILITIES, NONCONTROLLING INTERESTS AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

Current Liabilities:
Accounts payable	$	4,241,403		$	4,656,367
Accounts payable – related party		15,716,600			15,383,171
Accrued expenses and other liabilities		2,886,414			4,499,280
Interest payable – related parties		527,770			527,770
Revolving loan		3,000,000			3,000,000
Convertible notes at fair value		2,854,518			–
Current portion of long-term promissory note		2,701,003			2,722,548
Current portion of deferred revenue		3,864,474			3,947,559
Current portion of operating lease liabilities		1,042,688			1,444,385
Total current liabilities		36,834,870			36,181,080

Accrued expenses		265,251			265,251
Deferred revenue, net of current portion		23,740,999			21,519,888
Operating lease liabilities, net of current portion		52,921			57,983
Total liabilities		60,894,041			58,024,202

Commitments and contingencies

Stockholders’ Equity:
Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value, 500,000,000 shares authorized; 9,815,355 shares issued and 8,465,080 shares outstanding as of March 31, 2025, and 9,626,070 shares issued and 8,275,795 shares outstanding as of December 31, 2024		981			962
Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value, 100,000,000 shares authorized; 28,748,580 shares issued and outstanding as of March 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024		2,875			2,875
Additional paid-in capital		27,063,795			25,738,082
Accumulated other comprehensive loss		(224,202	)		(279,457	)
Accumulated deficit		(14,063,392	)		(12,117,385	)
Treasury stock at cost (1,350,275 shares as of March 31, 2025 and December 31, 2024)		(3,671,806	)		(3,671,806	)
Total Snail, Inc. equity		9,108,251			9,673,271
Noncontrolling interests		(5,505,065	)		(5,504,109	)
Total stockholders’ equity		3,603,186			4,169,162
Total liabilities, noncontrolling interests and stockholders’ equity	$	64,497,227		$	62,193,364

Snail, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2025 and 2024 (Unaudited)

	Three months ended March 31,
	*2025*			*2024*

Revenues, net	$	20,110,872		$	14,115,729
Cost of revenues		14,263,345			12,041,698

Gross profit		5,847,527			2,074,031

Operating expenses:
General and administrative		4,964,351			2,282,040
Research and development		3,609,745			1,776,522
Advertising and marketing		1,306,365			141,030
Depreciation and amortization		67,904			82,338
Total operating expenses		9,948,365			4,281,930

Loss from operations		(4,100,838	)		(2,207,899	)

Other income (expense):
Interest income		29,906			99,762
Interest income – related parties		493			499
Interest expense		(80,828	)		(395,964	)
Other income		769,762			227,066
Foreign currency transaction income (loss)		(36,288	)		18,128
Total other income (expense), net		683,045			(50,509	)

Loss before benefit from income taxes		(3,417,793	)		(2,258,408	)

Benefit from income taxes		(1,470,830	)		(477,950	)

Net loss		(1,946,963	)		(1,780,458	)

Net loss attributable to non-controlling interests		(956	)		(1,129	)

Net loss attributable to Snail, Inc.	$	(1,946,007	)	$	(1,779,329	)

Comprehensive loss statement:

Net loss	$	(1,946,963	)	$	(1,780,458	)

Other comprehensive income (loss) related to foreign currency translation adjustments, net of tax		33,232			(19,297	)
Other comprehensive income (loss) related to credit adjustments, net of tax		22,023			–

Total comprehensive loss	$	(1,891,708	)	$	(1,799,755	)

Net loss attributable to Class A common stockholders:
Basic	$	(441,731	)	$	(385,722	)
Diluted	$	(521,393	)	$	(385,722	)

Net loss attributable to Class B common stockholders:
Basic	$	(1,504,276	)	$	(1,393,607	)
Diluted	$	(1,775,558	)	$	(1,393,607	)

Loss per share attributable to Class A and B common stockholders:
Basic	$	(0.05	)	$	(0.05	)
Diluted	$	(0.06	)	$	(0.05	)

Weighted-average shares used to compute loss per share attributable to Class A common stockholders:
Basic		8,442,025			7,957,031
Diluted		9,241,822			7,957,031

Weighted-average shares used to compute loss per share attributable to Class B common stockholders:
Basic		28,748,580			28,748,580
Diluted		28,748,580			28,748,580

Snail, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2025 and 2024 (Unaudited)
	*2025*			*2024*

Cash flows from operating activities:
Net loss	$	(1,946,963	)	$	(1,780,458	)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by operating activities:
Amortization – intangible assets, net		35,516			200
Amortization – film assets		212,709			–
Amortization – loan origination fees and debt discounts		(1,889	)		47,729
Accretion – convertible notes		–			181,754
Gain on change in fair value of convertible notes		(117,105	)		–
Gain on change in fair value of warrant liabilities		(639,518	)		–
Depreciation and amortization – property and equipment		67,904			82,338
Stock-based compensation expense (income)		843,619			(926,875	)
Deferred taxes, net		(2,041,515	)		(555,781	)

Changes in assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable		696,553			17,759,629
Accounts receivable – related party		2,503,407			(1,085,213	)
Prepaid expenses – related party		(544,532	)		(1,351,838	)
Prepaid expenses and other current assets		377,962			(1,779,508	)
Prepaid taxes		143,451			70,407
Other noncurrent assets		(656,562	)		–
Accounts payable		(198,705	)		(1,938,654	)
Accounts payable – related party		623,430			(6,143,374	)
Accrued expenses and other liabilities		(650,236	)		(461,311	)
Loan and interest receivable – related party		(493	)		(499	)
Lease liabilities		(80,510	)		(64,821	)
Deferred revenue		2,138,026			4,723,462
Net cash provided by operating activities		764,549			6,777,187

Cash flows from investing activities:
Acquisition of software		(290,000	)		–
Acquisition of software licenses		(1,412,000	)		–
Investments in software		(177,002	)		–
Net cash used in investing activities		(1,879,002	)		–
Cash flows from financing activities:
Repayments on promissory note		(21,546	)		(20,484	)
Repayments on notes payable		–			(2,333,333	)
Repayments on convertible notes		–			(269,550	)
Repayments on revolving loan		–			(3,000,000	)
Cash proceeds from exercise of warrants		159,000			–
Proceeds from issuance of convertible notes		3,000,000			–
Payments of capitalized offering costs		–			(262,914	)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities		3,137,454			(5,886,281	)

Effect of foreign currency translation on cash and cash equivalents		32,171			(19,186	)

Net increase in cash and cash equivalents, and restricted cash and cash equivalents		2,055,172			871,720

Cash and cash equivalents, and restricted cash and cash equivalents – beginning of the period		8,238,944			16,314,319

Cash and cash equivalents, and restricted cash and cash equivalents – end of the period	$	10,294,116		$	17,186,039

Supplemental disclosures of cash flow information
Cash paid during the period for:
Interest	$	97,260		$	171,101
Income taxes	$	184,707		$	1,871
Noncash transactions during the period for:
Debt converted to equity	$	–		$	(60,000	)
Liabilities converted to equity upon exercise of warrants	$	323,113		$	–
Acquisition of film licenses in accounts payable	$	152,000		$	–
Acquisition of software and software licenses in accounts payable and accrued expenses	$	51,741		$	–
Change in fair value of notes recorded in accumulated other comprehensive income	$	22,023		$	–

The MIL Network –

May 15, 2025

MIL-OSI Russia: CPPCC National Committee Chairman Meets Zimbabwe National Assembly Speaker

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) — Wang Huning, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), met with Jacob Mudenda, speaker of the National Assembly (lower house) of Zimbabwe, in Beijing on Wednesday.

Wang Huning, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, said the in-depth and friendly communication between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa in Beijing last year provided strategic guidance for the development of bilateral relations.

The CPPCC National Committee chairman said China is willing to work with Zimbabwe to strengthen political mutual trust, expand practical cooperation and build a high-level China-Zimbabwe community with a shared future, guided by the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries.

The CPPCC National Committee intends to make its contribution to the development of bilateral relations, he added.

J. Mudenda, for his part, stressed that Zimbabwe firmly adheres to the one-China principle and hopes that the two sides will continuously strengthen exchanges at all levels, including government and non-governmental exchanges, and deepen cooperation in areas such as energy, culture and the digital economy.

The Zimbabwe National Assembly is ready to strengthen friendly ties with the CPPCC, promoting the socio-economic development of both countries, said J. Mudenda. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Member of the Standing Committee of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee met with the Mongolian delegation

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) — Cai Qi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and a member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, met with a Mongolian delegation led by General Secretary of the Mongolian People’s Party (MPP) Yangugiin Sodbaatar in Beijing on Wednesday.

Cai Qi said that the Chinese side is ready to strengthen exchanges and dialogue between the ruling parties of China and Mongolia, deepen strategic mutual trust and develop practical cooperation in various fields.

He called on the parties to expand friendly exchanges between peoples, especially between young people, enhance mutual learning in party building, and jointly uphold international fairness and justice.

Y. Sodbaatar, in turn, noted that the comprehensive strategic partnership between Mongolia and China has become a model of relations between neighboring countries. He emphasized that the development of long-term good-neighborly and friendly relations with China is a priority of Mongolia’s foreign policy.

Mongolia is ready to use the role of political parties to deepen mutual trust and align development strategies between the two countries, added Y. Sodbaatar. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Leaders of Belarus and Zimbabwe sign roadmap for strategic cooperation and partnership for 2026-2030

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

MINSK, May 14 (Xinhua) — Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa signed a roadmap for strategic cooperation and partnership for 2026-2030 following talks in Minsk on Wednesday, the press service of the Belarusian head of state reported.

A. Lukashenko stated that the signed package of bilateral documents, based on the roadmap, takes into account all key joint projects in various areas. According to the Belarusian leader, the parties held very intensive and productive negotiations.

“We discussed a wide range of issues, reviewed how the agreements already reached are being implemented, including during the visit to Zimbabwe two years ago. We identified new joint projects. At the same time, we paid special attention to the development of promising areas, including interregional interaction and industrial cooperation,” A. Lukashenko said and added that thanks to the support of the Zimbabwean leader, the two countries will more actively increase trade turnover, create joint promising production, and open new markets both in Africa and Eurasia.

A. Lukashenko noted that Belarus is ready to assist Zimbabwe in creating a comprehensive healthcare system, supplying medical products and special equipment from Belarus. The Belarusian leader drew attention to the fact that his country can also become a reliable partner of Zimbabwe in the implementation of modern waste processing technologies, digitalization, peaceful use of nuclear energy, and cooperation in space exploration.

In turn, E. Mnangagwa emphasized that the two countries have achieved success in bilateral cooperation. “The progress and growth that we are seeing in bilateral relations brings us satisfaction. We have indeed achieved success. However, there is a need to use these successes to move forward,” the President of Zimbabwe said.

He stressed that Belarus had made a huge contribution to Zimbabwe’s agricultural mechanization program and food security. “We are ready to continue to mechanize and modernize our dairy industry with the support of our Belarusian partners. Zimbabwe is keen to make progress in cooperation on machinery production, as we will benefit greatly from this. At the same time, I believe the Belarusian economy can also benefit from this, because it will be present in Africa,” the Zimbabwean leader added. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: In Belarus, the profitability of sold products and services for the three months since the beginning of 2025 amounted to 7.6 percent.

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

MINSK, May 14 (Xinhua) — In Belarus, for the period from January to March 2025, the profitability of sold products, goods, works and services amounted to 7.6 percent, and the profitability of sales was 6.2 percent. The relevant information was published on Wednesday by the Belarusian National Statistical Committee.

Accounts receivable as of April 1 amounted to 92.5 billion Belarusian rubles /1 US dollar equals 3.01 Belarusian rubles/, including overdue accounts – 10.4 billion Belarusian rubles, or 11.2 percent of the total accounts receivable.

Accounts payable as of April 1 amounted to 111.8 billion Belarusian rubles, including overdue accounts of 11.9 billion Belarusian rubles, or 10.7 percent of the total accounts payable.

The data are presented without banks, non-bank credit and financial institutions, insurance organizations, budgetary organizations, organizations without departmental subordination with an average number of employees for the previous year of less than 50 people /with the exception of organizations that are members of holdings/. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Mongolia’s foreign trade turnover fell by 6.7 percent in the first four months of 2025.

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

ULAN BATOR, May 14 (Xinhua) — Mongolia’s foreign trade turnover fell 6.7 percent to $7.8 billion in the first four months of 2025, the country’s National Statistical Committee said Wednesday.

During the specified period, exports from Mongolia decreased by 14.1 percent, amounting to $4.2 billion. Meanwhile, imports increased by 3.9 percent, reaching $3.6 billion.

The decline in exports was mainly due to a reduction in supplies of coal, crude oil, iron ore and combed cashmere from Mongolia to foreign countries. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Released lists shed light on Japanese germ warfare units’ activities in China

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

TOKYO, May 14 (Xinhua) — The National Archives of Japan on Wednesday released lists of personnel of three biological warfare units of the Imperial Japanese Army.

The documents contain detailed personal information on members of Units 1644, 8604 and 8609, including names, dates of birth, family register details, addresses and assignment details.

These lists, originally under the control of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, were transferred to the National Archives in March 2024 and were included in the list of documents to be released to the public in March 2025.

The documents were released at the request of researchers, including renowned bacteriological warfare expert and professor emeritus at the Shiga Prefectural University of Medical Sciences, Katsuo Nishiyama.

Kazuo Nishiyama said Wednesday that the discovery of the lists disproves previous claims that the germ warfare units existed.

During the invasion of China, the Japanese army formed several biological warfare units, including the infamous “Unit 731.” –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Head of the Propaganda Department of the CPC Central Committee Visits Morocco

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

RABAT, May 14 (Xinhua) — Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and director of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, led a CPC delegation to Morocco from May 12 to 14 at the invitation of the National Rally of Independents (NRII) Party.

During the visit, Li Shulei held separate meetings with senior Moroccan officials, including Prime Minister and PON Chairman Aziz Ahannouch, Speaker of the House of Representatives (lower house of parliament) Rachid al-Talbi Alami, Minister of Youth, Culture and Communication Mohamed Mehdi Bensaid, Minister of Equipment and Water Resources Nizar Baraka, and held talks with leaders of other major Moroccan political parties.

Li Shulei noted that under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, China-Morocco relations have developed rapidly and are enjoying the best period in history. He said China is willing to work with Morocco to implement the important consensus reached by the two leaders, strengthen political mutual trust, deepen strategic interaction, expand mutual learning between civilizations, and jointly advocate an equal and orderly multipolar world and an inclusive economic globalization that benefits everyone.

The head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee called for promoting high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road for the benefit of the two countries and their peoples, and making China-Morocco cultural and humanitarian exchanges and cooperation a model for implementing the Global Civilization Initiative.

Li Shulei added that the CPC hopes to deepen exchanges of governance experience with friendly political parties in Morocco to promote the further development of the China-Morocco strategic partnership through inter-party channels.

Representatives of the Moroccan side, in turn, stated that King Mohammed VI and the Moroccan government attach great importance to the development of relations with China and are ready to further advance practical cooperation in such areas as infrastructure construction, new energy sources and investment, strengthen exchanges at all levels, constantly enriching the content of the strategic partnership between the two countries.

In addition, Moroccan political parties expressed their willingness to deepen dialogue with the CPC, strengthen the exchange of ideas and experiences in order to more effectively promote the development of bilateral ties. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI NGOs: Ukraine: Establishment of the special tribunal for the crime of aggression must ensure victims-centered justice

Source: Amnesty International –

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Amnesty International, the International Commission of Jurists (the ICJ) and the undersigned organizations are encouraged by steps taken towards the establishment of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine by the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers, although regrettably final details on the mechanism’s legal framework, including its Statute, have not been made public. In this regard, the organizations call on the Council of Europe to urgently publish the draft Statute of the Tribunal to ensure the transparent and inclusive participation of civil society, especially victims and survivors, as the Tribunal is established and, certainly, in its proceedings.

The initiative to establish a Special Tribunal has been precipitated by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, and the creation of the Special Tribunal is a significant step towards holding those responsible, up to the highest levels, for the crime of aggression. In its annual meeting held on 14 May in Luxembourg, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe invited the Organisation’s Secretary General to lead the process for the establishment of the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, to be created on the basis of an agreement between the Council of Europe and Ukraine.

“The Tribunal is an important breakthrough for the international justice community and especially for the millions of Ukrainians who have been harmed by the Russian aggression”, said Oleksandra Matviichuk, FIDH Vice-President and Head of the Center for Civil Liberties. “For the court to be truly effective however, it must not become a remote and hollow entity that does not engage with the Ukrainian victims or give them access to proceedings.”

Until the draft Statute of the Tribunal is published, it is not possible to specifically comment on its contents. However, based on a recent explainer published by the Council of Europe regarding the proposed Tribunal, a number of observations can be made.

As a key preliminary observation, the organizations expect the Tribunal to be able to investigate and prosecute senior government and military leaders responsible for the crime of aggression, up to and including heads of state. In this regard, the organizations deeply regret the availability of “personal immunities”, which, according to the Council of Europe explainer, will be granted to the members of the Troika (Head of State, Head of Government and Minister for Foreign Affairs). The organizations firmly oppose the reported availability of personal immunities within the Tribunal’s legal framework. Immunity has no bearing on a person’s potential individual responsibility and the mechanism cannot allow such immunities to lead to impunity by enabling those who likely bear the most responsibility for the crime of aggression to escape prosecution. The organizations call on all stakeholders, in particular the Council of Europe and Ukraine to urgently amend the draft Statute for the Tribunal to remove the availability of personal immunities, which are not recognized by international criminal tribunals and for which there is a growing body of law and practice excluding them.

Veronika Velch, Director of Amnesty International Ukraine said: “The creation of the Special Tribunal is a step towards addressing some of the far too many accountability gaps confronting the delivery of justice for Ukrainians. It should ensure that the crime of aggression is thoroughly investigated. However, immunity goes hand in hand with impunity. In Amnesty International’s view, pursuing accountability at the highest level of Russia’s and other states’ political and military leadership must be a paramount objective of the Tribunal. Consequently, any immunity provisions which are currently in the Tribunal’s draft legal framework must be urgently removed or risk compromising future justice for victims of aggression. The Tribunal must not shy away from seeking indictments against all those who ordered, planned and implemented the crime of aggression against the people of Ukraine, including those most responsible.”

The possibility of holding trials in absentia (without the presence of the accused) also marks a regressive development from previously established international criminal tribunals. Although the Special Tribunal’s draft Statute is reported to ensure that an accused person has the right to request the reopening of proceedings if they had not previously waived their right to appear or accepted the initial judgment, the Tribunal will need to ensure any trials held in absentia respect the fair trial rights of the accused, including by effective representation by counsel even where they do not appear. In particular, trials in absentia may affect perceptions of objectivity and impartiality of trials where an accused person is not present to defend themselves. For these reasons, such trials should be avoided by the Tribunal.

We also emphasise the importance, and perception, of impartiality and independence in all investigations, prosecutions and adjudications, in line with international law and applicable European Convention on Human Rights’ standards.

“The Tribunal has to ensure complete compliance with international standards to maintain credibility,” said Kate Vigneswaran, Director of the Global Accountability Initiative at the ICJ. “Cases of aggression should normally be investigated and adjudicated by the ICC, and Rome Statute States Parties should ratify the Kampala amendment on the crime of aggression to ensure the Court’s capacity to do so.”

FIDH, Amnesty International, the ICJ and the undersigned organizations call on the international community, especially on all Council of Europe member and observer States, members of the Core Group, and international organizations, to pursue all avenues to investigate and prosecute the crime of aggression in Ukraine. To this end, cooperation by all stakeholders will be critical for effective investigations.

The organizations also underline that effective cooperation must be established between the Tribunal, the Council of Europe’s Register of Damage and the Claims Commission once established, as well as with the International Centre for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine (ICPA) and the International Criminal Court (ICC). The organizations also call on States to ratify the Ljubljana-The Hague Convention on International Cooperation in the Investigation and Prosecution of the Crime of Genocide, Crimes against Humanity, War Crimes and other International Crimes as a basis of cooperation with the Tribunal, as well as international cooperation between states.

The Special Tribunal should be able in legal and capacity terms to investigate and prosecute the crime of aggression against Ukraine. However, while the Tribunal is an important step, at the present juncture the need for comprehensive accountability for the crime of aggression requires the United Nations and the international community to continue to work towards a global and international justice response for the crime of aggression against Ukraine and other countries. Such an international mechanism should also exclude, if established under the auspices of the United Nations, the possibility of any immunity for those alleged to have committed the crime of aggression.

Victims of Russia’s aggression deserve justice now – peace must be accompanied by justice. All victims must be heard, and their rights to truth, justice and reparations must be central to all discussions and actions taken as the establishment of the Special Tribunal moves forward.

Background

Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which resulted in widespread violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, the ICC has issued arrest warrants for six Russian officials, including Vladimir Putin, for war crimes and crimes against humanity. However, the ICC currently lacks jurisdiction to prosecute the crime of aggression in Ukraine.

The agreement establishing the Special Tribunal is expected to be signed by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe following the decision of the Committee of Ministers adopted on 14 May 2025. Ukraine officially requested the Council of Europe to establish a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression on 14 May 2025.

MIL OSI NGO –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI NGOs: Russia: Sentencing of election observer Grigory Melkonyants a brazen attack on peaceful activism

Source: Amnesty International –

Reacting to the sentencing of Russian civil society activist and prisoner of conscience Grigory Melkonyants to five years in prison, Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s Eastern Europe and Central Asia Director, said:

“The Russian authorities instigated this criminal case in order to silence one of the country’s most respected election observers. Grigory Melkonyants has committed no crime – his only ‘offence’ was defending the right to free and fair elections in Russia. This is nothing more than a brazen and politically motivated clampdown on peaceful activism.

Grigory Melkonyants has committed no crime – his only ‘offence’ was defending the right to free and fair elections in Russia

Marie Struthers, Amnesty International’s Eastern Europe and Central Asia Director

“Grigory Melkonyants must be released unconditionally and his conviction quashed. The legislation that was used to target him must be repealed. The international community cannot remain silent – neither on this appalling verdict nor on the outrageous assault on civic space that is taking place in Russia.”

Background

The Basmanny District Court of Moscow also imposed a 9-year ban on Grigory Melkonyants, co-chair of the independent election watchdog Golos, participating in any civic activity. He was charged with purportedly organizing the activities of an “undesirable organization” – a nebulous term arbitrarily used by the Russian authorities to ban any organization they regard as a threat and to criminalize any association with said organizations.

The charges stem from Grigory Melkonyants’s alleged links to the European Network of Election Monitoring Organizations (ENEMO), which was declared “undesirable” in Russia in 2021. Melkonyants and Golos have consistently denied any institutional connection to ENEMO.

Grigory Melkonyants was arrested in August 2023. Amnesty International considers him a prisoner of conscience, prosecuted and imprisoned solely for his peaceful activism.

Throughout its 25-year history, Golos and its activists have faced harassment and persecution by the authorities. In 2013, it became the first organization in Russia to be labelled a “foreign agent” and was dissolved in 2016. Following the “foreign agent” designation, a movement under the same name was founded, which also engaged in election monitoring. In 2021, the movement and 20 of its activists and coordinators were declared “foreign agents.”

MIL OSI NGO –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: Written question – Moldova – E-001834/2025
Source: European Parliament
Question for written answer E-001834/2025
to the Commission
Rule 144
Fernand Kartheiser (ECR)

On 17 April 2025, the Moldovan authorities prevented Archbishop Marchel, of the Moldovan Orthodox Church linked to the Moscow Patriarchate, from travelling to Jerusalem for the the Holy Fire Ceremony. He was detained at Chisinau airport without any official explanation, raising concerns about respect for religious freedom.

As the EU has opened accession negotiations with Moldova, the country is obliged to fully respect the fundamental principles of the Union, such as the rule of law, human rights and religious freedoms. Any failure to respect these values could jeopardise its future within the European Union.

In light of the above:

1.What is the Commission’s view of this incident? Does the Commission view this as an infringement of religious freedom in Moldova?

2.Does the Commission intend to raise this issue with the Moldovan authorities and warn them that they must avoid the kind of abuse in Moldova that we have seen perpetrated in Ukraine, namely against Orthodox Christians belonging to the Moscow Patriarchate or Russian-speaking citizens?

Submitted: 7.5.2025
Last updated: 14 May 2025
MIL OSI Europe News –
May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Europe: Briefing – The future European security architecture: Dilemmas for EU strategic autonomy – 14-05-2025

Source: European Parliament

Europeans are searching for their geopolitical footprint and trying to build a European pillar in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) at a time when the United States is likely to reduce its engagement in Europe, while Russia is looking for a reset of the European security architecture, which developed at the end of the Cold War, by waging war on Ukraine. After analysing the evolution of key security organisations in Europe – NATO, the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE)/Organisation on Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the European Union (EU) – and the defence policies of individual countries, five possible scenarios for a new European security architecture were developed with the use of foresight methodology. Based on expert consultations, four of the scenarios – Antagonism, European NATO, European Defence Union and Patchwork – point to an increasingly antagonistic world in the next decade. These scenarios consider the degree of US (dis)engagement from Europe, EU-NATO relations and the possible outcome of the Ukraine war. While Antagonism can largely be seen as a continuation of the current state of play, with a solid transatlantic relationship anchored in NATO, the Patchwork scenario is the most challenging, with no strong alliance and in which Europe becomes a playground. Conversely, a new détente (relaxation of relations among global powers) leading to a more cooperative world needs a new triggering factor. This scenario, Cooperative co-existence, would possibly require over a decade to happen, and Europeans would need to compensate for further US disengagement from Europe, either through a European NATO or a European Defence Union, if they wish to matter as a geopolitical actor. Europeans therefore need to increase defence funding (in the case of further US disengagement, possibly by above 5 % of GDP), strengthen their capabilities, including nuclear and space capabilities, keep pace with the technological race and bolster the European defence industrial network. By developing its strategic autonomy, the EU might enhance its agency in defence matters, preserve transatlantic ties and allow the European interest to prevail.

MIL OSI Europe News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: Ceasefire declared in Libya’s Tripoli after overnight clashes

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

TRIPOLI, May 14 (Xinhua) — Libya’s Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA) declared a ceasefire on Wednesday following intense overnight clashes between rival armed groups in the capital’s downtown and residential areas, prompting international calls to protect civilians and prevent further escalation.

Fighting broke out overnight between forces loyal to Libyan Prime Minister Abdel Hamid Dbeibeh, including the 444th Brigade, and forces linked to Special Deterrence Forces chief Abdel Raouf Kara.

According to local residents, the shooting continued until the morning, and the Libyan Red Crescent reported finding a dead person in the center of Tripoli. The extent of the human casualties has not yet been established.

The UN Support Mission in Libya condemned the violence and attacks on civilian areas and warned that damage to non-combatants and infrastructure “may amount to crimes under international law.”

The GNA Defense Ministry said the ceasefire had come into effect by midday. Buffer forces had been deployed to separate the conflicting parties and stabilize the situation in hot spots.

The fighting followed deadly clashes on May 12 between forces loyal to A.H. Dbeibah and the Stability Support Apparatus following the killing of the head of the organisation, Abdel Ghani al-Kikli, better known as Ghaniwa.

A senior official said A.G. al-Kikli was killed in a compound controlled by the 444th Brigade, which is commanded by Mahmoud Hamza, a militia leader linked to A.H. Dbeibah. A.G. al-Kikli’s death triggered a wave of clashes that left at least six people dead, according to security sources.

More than a decade after the 2011 overthrow of longtime ruler Muammar Gaddafi, Libya remains a deeply divided country. The government in the east relies on the Libyan National Army, led by commander-in-chief Khalifa Haftar, while the UN recognizes the GNA, which controls the west. Meanwhile, rival militia groups loyal to the western government are also battling for power. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: 11 killed in Ethiopia truck crash

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

ADDIS ABABA, May 14 (Xinhua) — At least 11 people were killed and 25 others injured in a road accident in southern Ethiopia, local authorities said.

A truck carrying 42 people and goods lost control and overturned in West Hararghe area of Oromia region, state broadcaster Fana reported on Tuesday.

West Hararghe communications director Farid Yishak said 25 people with serious and minor injuries were taken to nearby health facilities following the tragedy. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: China issued 10.06 trillion yuan in new loans in first four months of 2025

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) — China issued 10.06 trillion yuan (1.39 trillion U.S. dollars) worth of new renminbi-denominated loans in the first four months of 2025, data from the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) showed Wednesday.

According to the PBOC, the volume of outstanding loans stood at 265.7 trillion yuan at the end of April, up 7.2 percent year-on-year.

In the first four months, loans to households increased by 518.4 billion yuan, while loans to businesses increased by 9.27 trillion yuan.

As noted by the Central Bank, by the end of April this year, the volume of money supply M2, which includes cash in circulation and all deposits, increased by 8 percent year-on-year to 325.17 trillion yuan.

At the same time, the volume of M1 money supply, covering cash in circulation, demand deposits and funds in accounts of clients of non-bank payment institutions, amounted to 109.14 trillion yuan, showing an increase of 1.5 percent year-on-year.

The M0 money supply, which includes all cash in circulation, reached 13.14 trillion yuan by the end of last month, up 12 percent year-on-year.

In the first four months, the volume of yuan deposits in China increased by 12.55 trillion yuan, of which 7.83 trillion yuan came from household deposits.

According to preliminary estimates, China’s public finance reserves reached 424 trillion yuan at the end of April, up 8.7 percent year-on-year.

Preliminary data also showed that public funding increased by 16.34 trillion yuan in the first four months, up 3.61 trillion yuan from the same period last year. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Managing risk-reduction even in times of crisis: UK Statement to the OSCE
Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

Speech

Managing risk-reduction even in times of crisis: UK Statement to the OSCE

Ambassador Holland reiterates the UK’s support to Ukraine, calls on Russia to end its war and to use this unique Forum for risk-reduction, even in crisis.
Thank you Madam Chair, dear Kaja, and to the Secretary General, for setting out Estonia’s priorities for the Forum for Security Co-operation this Trimester. You can count on the UK’s continued support, as you chair our Forum at this crucial time for Euro-Atlantic Security.

Madam Chair, as we know, the FSC’s mandate is broad and has rightly evolved over decades. In 1996, our Heads of State and Government adopted a Decision tasking the Forum to manage “preventive diplomacy, crisis management and post-conflict rehabilitation”. In the 1996 Budapest Document, Ministers tasked the FSC with: “tackling regional security problems (including crises) flexibly in ways appropriate to each case”. So not only did our Ministers mandate the Forum to manage risk-reduction, they also saw value in our politico-military dialogue continuing even in times of crisis.

The OSCE has an extensive acquis and toolkit to do this work. But it relies on political will to be effective. Participating States have used the toolkit, including transparency mechanisms, to offer de-escalation. For example, by Georgia in 2008, by Ukraine – twenty times – in 2014, and again by Ukraine in 2022. As these examples proved, transparency mechanisms can offer a ladder to defuse a situation or at least an early warning indicator. But no tool can substitute for the political will required to de-escalate. Especially if that State has decided to invade, as Russia’s actions have shown so clearly.

Madam Chair, the Code of Conduct commits us to act in solidarity if OSCE norms and commitments are violated. As catalogued by the OSCE Moscow Mechanisms, ODIHR and UN, there is irrefutable independent evidence of Russia violating international law. As per the Code, such breaches are a “direct and legitimate” concern for us all. 

That is why our weekly statements will continue reiterating our support for Ukraine and calling for Russia to end its war and return to abiding by the UN Charter and the Helsinki Final Act. That is why we welcome Estonia’s three Security Dialogue topics on the Code of Conduct; Women, Peace & Security; and protection of children in armed conflicts, keeping a focus on Russia’s invasion. That is also why we will keep on using this Forum and its tools to execute our mandate, including on risk-reduction and voluntary briefs on military exercises.

Madam Chair, our Ministers mandated the Forum to hold a weekly politico-military dialogue in order to execute our vital mandate. We can only do that if we respect the Forum and meet weekly to fulfil, not to frustrate, its work.

I wish to conclude by welcoming Finland to the FSC Troika, and to thank Denmark for their work as they leave the Troika. And most importantly, I wish you, Madam Chair, and your able teams here in Vienna and in Tallinn the best of luck this Trimester. You can count on the support of the UK delegation.

Updates to this page

Published 14 May 2025

Invasion of Ukraine

UK visa support for Ukrainian nationals

Move to the UK if you’re coming from Ukraine

Homes for Ukraine: record your interest

Find out about the UK’s response
MIL OSI United Kingdom –
May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: China ready to provide all the comforts for the new US ambassador in the performance of his duties – Chinese Foreign Ministry

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) — China is ready to provide all the facilities for the new U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue to carry out his duties, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said on Wednesday.

Lin Jian made the statement at a regular briefing for journalists, answering a question about D. Perdue’s inauguration.

“China’s position on China-US relations remains consistent,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman added. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: China’s countermeasures against unjustified US tariffs imposed under the pretext of fentanyl problem remain in force – Chinese Foreign Ministry /more details/

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

BEIJING, May 14 (Xinhua) — The United States has imposed two rounds of unreasonable tariffs on China under the pretext of the fentanyl issue, to which China has responded with timely tariff and non-tariff countermeasures, firmly safeguarding its legitimate rights and interests. “These countermeasures remain in effect,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said Wednesday.

Lin Jian made the statement at a regular briefing for journalists in response to a question on the matter.

As the Chinese diplomat recalled, China and the United States reached a number of positive agreements during trade and economic negotiations in Geneva, agreeing to a significant reduction in the level of bilateral duties.

Following the talks, the United States promised to cancel 91 percent of additional duties on Chinese products and suspend 24 percent of “mirror duties.” China, for its part, also canceled 91 percent of additional retaliatory duties on American imports and suspended 24 percent of retaliatory duties. At the same time, both countries retained mutual customs duties of 10 percent. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: The 7th Central Asian Conference on Climate Change was held in Ashgabat

Translation. Region: Russian Federal

Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

ALMATY, May 14 (Xinhua) — The 7th Central Asian Conference on Climate Change was held in Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, from Tuesday to Wednesday. The main theme of the event was stated as “Achieving the global goal of climate finance through regional and national actions in Central Asia,” the International Information Center of Turkmenistan reported on Wednesday.

The conference was organized by the Regional Environmental Center for Central Asia and the Government of Turkmenistan, and was held with the support of the World Bank and the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ).

Over the course of two days, representatives of countries in the region and international organizations discussed common approaches to combating climate challenges.

The opening ceremony featured welcoming speeches from the Minister of Environmental Protection of Turkmenistan, as well as high-ranking representatives of the World Bank, GIZ, the EU and the UN Development Programme. During a special session, representatives of the World Bank, the UK, the EU and Italy outlined their approaches and spoke about climate finance opportunities for Central Asian countries. Particular attention was paid to mechanisms for the effective use of funds raised.

The key topics of the second day of the event were transboundary landscape restoration and combating land degradation.

Conference participants confirmed their understanding of common climate challenges and the readiness of Central Asian countries to work together, naming the transition from discussions to practical actions as a priority goal and promising to continue work on forming a regional climate agenda and preparing for future summits. –0–

MIL OSI Russia News –

May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Russia: The Quest for Public Debt Transparency in EMDEs

Source: IMF – News in Russian

Keynote Speech by IMF Financial Counsellor and Director of the Monetary and Capital Markets Department
IMF Conference: Public Debt Transparency—Aligning the Law with Good Practices

May 14, 2025

Opening – Scope of the Speech

Good afternoon, everyone. It is a privilege to be here with you. Behind many sovereign debt crises there is often a simple, but difficult truth: the full picture of public debt and contingent liabilities which migrated to sovereign balance sheets was not visible to the public until it was too late. Transparency, therefore, is not just ideal—it is essential.

This Conference demonstrates the Fund’s shared commitment to turning transparency from a goal into a reality in our member countries. I want to thank our IMF Legal Department for this timely initiative and inviting me to speak today.

I would like to address the importance of transparency from the vantage point of the markets and the sovereign borrowers—specifically, the debt managers. I’ll first address why transparency matters, and why now more than ever. I’ll then delve into where countries stand today, the obstacles we face, and some possible solutions. I’ll give you a brief tour of how the Fund works to improve transparency in our three core activities of surveillance, lending, and capacity development—and finally, offer some thoughts on the path forward.

The Difficult Backdrop Calls for Greater Transparency

As you have already heard from our IMF Managing Director this morning, ensuring public debt transparency remains critical to monitor debt vulnerabilities, at a time of historically high public debt in emerging market (EM) and developing economies.

The current global environment presents challenges for many countries to access capital markets. EMs are already facing the highest real financing costs in a decade and will have to continue issuing government debt, including meeting new fiscal spending needs. Small middle-income countries and frontier economies face a more difficult situation. Several frontier economies would find it difficult to issue a Eurobond at current levels. Meeting external financing needs will be challenging for many frontier borrowers if official development assistance is reduced. Domestic market funding may not be sufficient to substitute for external borrowing. So, the stakes are high.

Why Transparency Matters

Transparency is foundational—in periods of both calm and stress.

In normal times, it builds credibility and fosters trust. It helps countries reduce borrowing costs and reinforces accountability to a country’s citizens. Transparent debt management operations, backed by clear strategies, predictable borrowing plans, and regular reporting pays off in improved market confidence and lower credit risk. Transparency also pays off by providing better access to sovereign debt markets.

Even under sovereign stress, transparency acts as a stabilizing force. Opacity might offer short-term breathing space, but it raises long-term borrowing costs. “Debt surprises” damage trust, increase the cost of borrowing and increase the severity of crises. Conversely, sovereigns that disclose the full picture early—and align this with credible fiscal plans—can stabilize expectations. And at the extreme, for countries facing default, when public debt becomes too high and the government cannot borrow at sustainable terms, transparency also has a role to play in negotiations with creditors by enabling a faster resolution of debt problems during debt restructuring

To ensure adequate public debt transparency, stakeholders should be able to count on the availability of timely, accurate, and comprehensive information on public debt stock and flows. You can think of this as the outcome of a country’s debt management. But from the perspective of Fund work, the concept of public debt management transparency is broader—it also encompasses the availability of key procedures and policies on public debt and of sound legal frameworks to support them. This should cover both the central and the general government.

The Current State of Public Debt Transparency in EMDEs

Evaluated against these metrics, sovereigns in advanced economies generally abide to high standards of debt transparency. Advanced economies typically finance themselves in markets, which impose market discipline. The process for sharing information on their borrowings is well established and institutionalized, and as a result, data on public debt is readily accessible. Some emerging markets are as transparent as advanced economies on their general government debt. However, governments in many emerging markets and developing economies rely significantly on external loans as well as on non-marketable domestic debt which can make their debt less transparent.

Many factors explain the opaqueness of government borrowings in emerging markets and developing economies. These include lenders’ preferences, persistently large borrowing needs, low accountability, aversion to transparency, shallow bond markets, and lack of capacity. While inadequate public debt transparency is often the result of an interplay between several factors, analyzing them separately allows identifying potential solutions that are most urgently needed. Allow me to highlight a few key factors and what can be done to address them.

First, lender preferences. Some resource-exporting countries use collateralized debt structures at the behest of creditors, involving special purpose vehicles that conceal the nature and seniority of these debt structures. Importantly, collateralized debt is often undertaken with confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements that impede reporting and disclosure.

Solutions to address this type of opacity require establishing a legal and policy framework that discourages such borrowing structures. Legal frameworks can also help tackle this problem by limiting the scope of confidentiality agreements the executive can enter into and mandating a minimum level of disclosure regarding the financial terms of these debt liabilities.

Second, the reticence of sovereign borrowers to disclose their borrowings. This can be an intentional under-reporting of public debt liabilities. However, it is often more subtle: some sovereigns rely on financing by state-owned enterprises (SOEs) or other entities that are effectively backed by the government, but whose debt liabilities are kept off-budget.

Finding solutions to this problem is a difficult challenge. The solution is stronger governance, supported by stronger legal frameworks around the entire public financial management ecosystem. Such frameworks would warrant disclosure of all public debt liabilities and new borrowings, including by SOEs, and extra-budgetary entities supplemented with full fiscal transparency of the government and the SOEs balance sheets.

Third, there can be gaps in the framework for public debt transparency. Such gaps mostly reflect shortcomings in the governance, reporting, and the institutional and policy framework of public debt. In many countries, this is a function of fragmented debt management responsibilities even within the central government. Inadequate transparency in such countries does not imply a lack of willingness by the sovereign to disclose its debt liabilities, but rather a deficiency in its ability to be adequately transparent. We see many such cases in our work.

Addressing these gaps requires a broad-based approach, starting from the legal and governance framework, and weaving through institutional arrangements and the policy framework for public debt management. We have seen some countries make tangible progress that we have supported with capacity development, although more needs to be done across our membership.

Leveraging Marketable Debt for Transparency and Sound Financing

While much of the global discussion related to transparency has focused on external debt. I will take this opportunity to speak about debt issued in the local market and how greater reliance on marketable debt could drive better transparency and sound financing. Domestic debt transparency is an overlooked issue in the debt discussions on low-income countries (LICs).

Large emerging markets typically have well-developed domestic government securities markets characterized by strong transparency practices. As in advanced economies, the cost of borrowing in large EMs reflect market forces. In the last decade or so, sovereigns from smaller emerging markets and LICs have relied more heavily on domestic debt. However, in these countries, transparency practices in domestic debt markets are often weak. And since in some cases the development of local debt markets is still evolving, many borrowers rely on non-marketable debt to fill part of their domestic financing needs. Non-marketable borrowing tends to be more insulated from price signals and inherently less transparent.

There is a solution: accepting market prices. Transparency is a prerequisite for markets to operate well. Transparency on primary market issuances is crucial for price discovery and predictability for investors. And transparency in secondary market pricing and transactions is important for market liquidity. Such steps could create a self-reinforcing dynamic to improve transparency.

IMF Work on Debt Transparency

Against this background, let me now give you a brief account of what we do in the Fund to promote debt transparency by sovereign borrowers. These efforts span the three key areas of Fund activity: bilateral surveillance, lending, and capacity development.

Within bilateral surveillance, the IMF last year decided to expand the scope of mandatory reporting on debt by member countries. Members will be required to report on general government debt stock from this year (2025) and to report its detailed composition from 2027.

In the context of our lending programs, the IMF Debt Limits Policy has raised the bar on debt disclosure. Where countries have critical debt data disclosure gaps, these should be addressed upfront in IMF-supported programs. And every IMF program staff report is now required to provide granular information on debt holders and debt service by creditor for a period of three years as well as information on the stock of collateralized debt.

Our work on Capacity Development (CD), supports efforts to enhance transparency by sovereign borrowers. Over the years, debt transparency has increasingly been mainstreamed across many areas including support on public debt management, fiscal transparency assessments, debt sustainability assessments, the domestic legal framework on public debt management, and statistical dissemination of public debt. Further, debt transparency has now been added as an explicit outcome in our Results-based Management framework, which we use to monitor the effectiveness of our CD delivery.

The Fund has stepped up its CD work on public debt reporting and monitoring, publication of medium-term debt management strategies and annual borrowing plans, and fiscal risk assessments—all of which will contribute to enhance transparency by our member countries. For this purpose, staff from different departments—including staff from MCM, as well as the IMF’s Fiscal Affairs, Statistics and Legal Departments—work closely with officials across our membership from the Ministries of Finance, Debt Management Offices, Central Banks, and Audit Institutions.

Our policy and analytical work—including papers like Making Public Debt Public, and those on Sovereign Investor Relations and Legal Foundations of Public Debt Transparency—shape global thinking and inform Fund policy. At the same time, our longstanding guidance—like the IMF-World Bank Guidelines on Public Debt Management and the Fund’s Fiscal Transparency Codeas well as statistical standards—continues to provide an anchor for sound debt transparency practices across our membership.

Conclusion

As you carry forward your discussion today and tomorrow on the legal reforms needed to promote transparency of sovereign debt, I would like to leave you with four key messages.

First, public debt transparency helps a sovereign, both in good and bad times.

Second, enhancing debt transparency is all the more critical under the current global environment.

Third, debt transparency must be designed and not assumed as a default setting.

Fourth, it must be embedded in law, institutions, and incentives—across the full spectrum of public borrowing.

To achieve this, countries should develop a strong governance mechanism on public debt supported by robust legal and institutional frameworks. Such frameworks should not only cover central government debt but also extend across the general government and state-owned enterprises. The goal is clear. However, we must acknowledge that this would be a big ask and long-term project, especially given the capacity constraints in many emerging and developing economies.

A well-sequenced approach to upgrade the transparency framework will be crucial. For many countries, starting with central government debt and expanding outward in a phased, realistic way could be the right approach. Enhancing transparency on general government debt and the wider public sector would be the next priority.

The Fund remains a committed partner in this journey—helping countries move from fragmented systems and hidden risks to integrated frameworks and informed policy choices.

Thank you—and I wish you a productive remainder of the conference.

IMF Communications Department

MEDIA RELATIONS

PRESS OFFICER:

Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org

@IMFSpokesperson

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MIL OSI

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May 15, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Why are Turkey and the PKK turning to peace – and can it last?

Source: The Conversation – UK – By Pinar Dinc, Associate Professor of Political Science, Department of Political Science and Researcher, Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies, Lund University

Negotiations to end more than 40 years of conflict between the Turkish state and the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK) have taken on a concrete dimension. On May 12, two months after the PKK’s imprisoned leader, Abdullah Öcalan, wrote a letter in which he called on the group to lay down its arms, it has announced it will disband.

The PKK, which has been fighting for greater Kurdish rights and autonomy, has outlined several conditions it views as essential for it to dissolve. It insists that Öcalan lead and direct the peace process, that the right to democratic politics in Turkey is recognised, and that the group is given solid legal guarantees.

On the one hand, there seems to be great longing for peace between Turkey and the PKK. This has been evidenced by the positive reactions to the PKK’s statement both nationally and internationally.

Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, said the PKK’s disengagement with terror had opened “the doors of a new era in every area, namely strengthening politics and democratic capacity”.

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However, there is also scepticism. Turkey views the peace process very differently from the Kurds, referring to it as part of the government’s “terror-free Turkey” initiative. The Kurdish movement has instead adopted the title of Öcalan’s February letter, “Call for Peace and Democratic Society”.

Many also see Erdoğan’s willingness to resolve the Kurdish issue as a political maneuver by the ruling Justice and Development party (AKP). Positioning itself as the party that ended decades of “terror” at the hands of the PKK would allow the AKP to consolidate its hold on power.

But, notwithstanding this, there are clear reasons for both the Turkish state and the PKK to come to the negotiating table now. One of the leading reasons is the changing geopolitical dynamics of the Middle East.

In late 2024, Bashar al-Assad’s regime was toppled in Syria and the country was subsequently taken over by Islamist militants. Iran’s influence has also been weakened following the collapse of parts of its regional proxy network, notably Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and, most recently, the Houthis in Yemen.

Israel, meanwhile, is continuing its war in Gaza. And it has intensified its military operations in Syria, particularly near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, alongside open expressions of support for Syria’s Druze religous communities.

At the same time, Donald Trump has returned to the White House and reopened the door to dialogue with Iran over its nuclear programme. The region’s politics are being reshaped, and leaders across the Middle East are repositioning themselves accordingly.

For the PKK and its broader political base, a peace process with Turkey offers a pathway to equal citizenship, democratic participation and long-term legitimacy for Kurds in the Middle East after nearly a century of struggle.

This was signalled by the Kurdish National Conference in April 2025. The conference, which was attended by different Kurdish parties and organisations, highlighted the importance of strategic coordination among Kurds in the region.

For Turkey, peace with the PKK now would further reduce a weakened Iran’s ability to project power westward. Some groups suspected of being affiliated with the PKK, such as the Sinjar Resistance Units in northern Iraq, have been indirectly supported by Iran.

Turkey’s handling of the PKK conflict and the broader Kurdish issue has also often complicated its engagement with the west. For example, human rights groups have accused Turkey of allowing the Syrian National Army (a coalition of armed groups in northern Syria) to act with impunity against Kurdish civilians in areas outside its control.

This has created friction in Turkey’s diplomatic outreach to the US and Europe. By addressing the longstanding Kurdish issue, Ankara could lay the groundwork for more stable relations with the west. These relations are particularly important now as Turkey is looking to take an increasingly key role in European security.

It is serving as a mediator in negotiations to end the Ukraine war. And Erdoğan has even offered to host direct talks between the Ukrainian president, Volodymr Zelensky, and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Istanbul.

Bumpy road ahead

The PKK’s dissolution will not guarantee peace in Turkey. The Kurdish people expect equal citizenship and the end the government’s practice of removing elected mayors and replacing them with state-appointed trustees.

They also demand the release of political prisoners and reforms to Turkey’s anti-terrorism laws, which critics say are frequently used to suppress dissent. These issues will be discussed in parliament over the coming days, with talks on a new constitution expected to take place in the autumn.

The negotiations will not be simple. The Kurds have been persistently labelled as rebels, traitors and terrorists since the beginning of the Turkish republic in 1923. It will not be easy to change entrenched opinions overnight.

Özgür Özel, the leader of Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s party (CHP), has emphasised the importance of resolving the Kurdish issue peacefully and democratically. But it is not clear whether his views reflect those of his supporter base and Turkish society more broadly.

Turkey must be further democratised to give the peace process a greater chance of success. The nation’s vibrant civil society currently operates under intense pressure from the state. Giving it more of a voice will help bring Turkey’s deeply divided society together.

It is always difficult – if not impossible – to make predictions about the future when it comes to Middle Eastern politics. However, a new balance is being established in the Middle East, and in this new balance very different players have to sit at the same table.

Pinar Dinc is the principal investigator of the ECO-Syria project, which receives funding from the Strategic Research Area: The Middle East in the Contemporary World (MECW) at the Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies, Lund University, Sweden.

– ref. Why are Turkey and the PKK turning to peace – and can it last? – https://theconversation.com/why-are-turkey-and-the-pkk-turning-to-peace-and-can-it-last-256527

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

May 15, 2025

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Bumpy road ahead