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Category: Switzerland

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Statement on Inclusive and Sustainable Artificial Intelligence for People and the Planet

    Source: Government of Canada – Prime Minister

    1. Participants from over 100 countries, including government leaders, international organisations, representatives of civil society, the private sector, and the academic and research communities gathered in Paris on February 10 and 11, 2025, to hold the AI Action Summit. Rapid development of AI technologies represents a major paradigm shift, impacting our citizens, and societies in many ways. In line with the Paris Pact for People and the Planet, and the principles that countries must have ownership of their transition strategies, we have identified priorities and launched concrete actions to advance the public interest and to bridge digital divides through accelerating progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Our actions are grounded in three main principles of science, solutions – focusing on open AI models in compliance with countries frameworks – and policy standards, in line with international frameworks.
    2. This Summit has highlighted the importance of reinforcing the diversity of the AI ecosystem. It has laid an open, multi-stakeholder and inclusive approach that will enable AI to be human rights based, human-centric, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy while also stressing the need and urgency to narrow the inequalities and assist developing countries in artificial intelligence capacity-building so they can build AI capacities.
    3. Acknowledging existing multilateral initiatives on AI, including the United Nations General Assembly Resolutions, the Global Digital Compact, the UNESCO Recommendation on Ethics of AI, the African Union Continental AI Strategy, and the works of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Council of Europe and European Union, the G7 including the Hiroshima AI Process and G20, we have affirmed the following main priorities: 

    • Promoting AI accessibility to reduce digital divides

    • Ensuring AI is open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy, taking into account international frameworks for all 

    • Making innovation in AI thrive by enabling conditions for its development and avoiding market concentration driving industrial recovery and development

    • Encouraging AI deployment that positively shapes the future of work and labour markets and delivers opportunity for sustainable growth

    • Making AI sustainable for people and the planet

    • Reinforcing international cooperation to promote coordination in international governance

    To deliver on these priorities: 

    • Founding members have launched a major Public Interest AI Platform and Incubator, to support, amplify, decrease fragmentation between existing public and private initiatives on Public Interest AI and address digital divides. The Public interest AI Initiative will sustain and support digital public goods and technical assistance and capacity building projects in data, model development, openness and transparency, audit, compute, talent, financing and collaboration to support and co-create a trustworthy AI ecosystem advancing the public interest of all, for all and by all. 

    • We have discussed, at a Summit for the first time and in a multi-stakeholder format, issues related to AI and energy. This discussion has led to sharing knowledge to foster investments for sustainable AI systems (hardware, infrastructure, models), to promoting an international discussion on AI and environment, to welcoming an observatory on the energy impact of AI with the International Energy Agency, to showcasing energy-friendly AI innovation.
    • We recognize the need to enhance our shared knowledge on the impacts of AI in the job market, though the creation of network of Observatories, to better anticipate AI implications for workplaces, training and education and to use AI to foster productivity, skill development, quality and working conditions and social dialogue.
    1. We recognize the need for inclusive multistakeholder dialogues and cooperation on AI governance. We underline the need for a global reflection integrating inter alia questions of safety, sustainable development, innovation, respect of international laws including humanitarian law and human rights law and the protection of human rights, gender equality, linguistic diversity, protection of consumers and of intellectual property rights. We take notes of efforts and discussions related to international fora where AI governance is examined. As outlined in the Global Digital Compact adopted by the UN General Assembly, participants also reaffirmed their commitment to initiate a Global Dialogue on AI governance and the Independent International Scientific Panel on AI and to align on-going governance efforts, ensuring complementarity and avoiding duplication. 
    2. Harnessing the benefits of AI technologies to support our economies and societies depends on advancing Trust and Safety. We commend the role of the Bletchley Park AI Safety Summit and Seoul Summits that have been essential in progressing international cooperation on AI safety and we note the voluntary commitments launched there. We will keep addressing the risks of AI to information integrity and continue the work on AI transparency. 
    3. We look forward to next AI milestones such as the Kigali Summit, the 3rd Global Forum on the Ethics of AI hosted by Thailand and UNESCO, the 2025 World AI Conference and the AI for Good Global Summit 2025 to follow up on our commitments and continue to take concrete actions aligned with a sustainable and inclusive AI.

    Signatory countries: 

    1. Armenia
    2. Australia
    3. Austria
    4. Belgium
    5. Brazil
    6. Bulgaria
    7. Cambodia
    8. Canada
    9. Chile
    10. China
    11. Croatia
    12. Cyprus
    13. Czechia
    14. Denmark
    15. Djibouti
    16. Estonia
    17. Finland
    18. France
    19. Germany
    20. Greece
    21. Hungary
    22. India
    23. Indonesia
    24. Ireland
    25. Italy
    26. Japan
    27. Kazakhstan
    28. Kenya
    29. Latvia
    30. Lithuania
    31. Luxembourg
    32. Malta
    33. Mexico
    34. Monaco
    35. Morocco
    36. New Zealand
    37. Nigeria
    38. Norway
    39. Poland
    40. Portugal
    41. Romania
    42. Rwanda
    43. Senegal
    44. Serbia
    45. Singapore
    46. Slovakia
    47. Slovenia
    48. South Africa
    49. Republic of Korea
    50. Spain
    51. Sweden
    52. Switzerland
    53. Thailand
    54. Netherlands
    55. United Arab Emirates
    56. Ukraine
    57. Uruguay
    58. Vatican
    59. European Union
    60. African Union Commission

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Support for reconstruction: Federal Council adopts 2025–28 country programme for Ukraine

    Source: Switzerland – Federal Council in English

    The 2025–28 country programme marks the start of a twelve-year federal support process for reconstruction, reform and sustainable development in Ukraine. At its meeting on 12 February, the Federal Council defined the priorities of the country programme, namely protection of the civilian population, peace, economic recovery and strengthening institutions. CHF 1.5 billion from the international cooperation budget has been earmarked up to 2028. Ambassador Jacques Gerber, the Federal Council’s delegate for Ukraine, is responsible for implementing the country programme.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Medicinal Products Licensing Ordinance modified

    Source: Switzerland – Federal Council in English

    The Federal Council resolved at its meeting of 12 February 2025 to enable international organisations headquartered in Switzerland to import non-authorised medicinal products into the country for their own personnel under certain conditions. The new provisions cover medicinal products such as vaccines for employees of the United Nations and its specialised agencies.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Deforestation-free trade dialogue

    Source: United Nations Economic Commission for Europe

     

     

     

     

    On 13 November 2024, UNECE organized the Deforestation-free trade dialogue. We invited everyone from the wood, cattle, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber and soy sectors as well as those involved in the leather, chocolate, tires and pulp and paper trade and industry to this discussion.

    The special focus of this dialogue was the European Union’s Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 on deforestation-free products (EUDR) and its implications.

    The event was part of the 82nd session of the UNECE Committee on Forests and the Forest Industry and was held in Geneva, Switzerland with simultaneous interpretation in English, Russian and French.

     

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Dignity for migrants should be our guiding light, insists ‘Cabrini’ film star

    Source: United Nations MIL OSI b

    By Daniel Johnson

    Migrants and Refugees

    ‘Cabrini’ film lead and Gomorrah star Cristiana Dell’Anna travelled to Geneva on Friday to highlight the age-old dangers confronting migrants – and the astonishing Italian missionary who travelled to New York City’s slums at the turn of the last century, determined to protect them.

    “Being from southern Italy, the migration issue is very close to my heart. Southern Italians have always emigrated throughout history, especially during the Second World War and I have in my family people who have emigrated and I am an emigrant myself,” Ms. Dell’Anna said, ahead of a special screening of her film at the Palace of Nations in the Swiss city.

    Inspired by the true story of Italian nun, Mother Francesca Cabrini, who Pope Leo XIII tasked with helping vulnerable migrants arriving in the United States at the turn of the last century, her gripping account offers an uncomfortable perspective on the discrimination and racism reserved for impoverished and dark-skinned Italian migrants yet to learn English in the already booming city – where Italian street children are denigrated as “monkeys”.

    Painfully accurate

    “It is very accurate – in fact, this one particular shot I’m thinking of, of some children, sitting on just by a little wall – it’s inspired by a picture that was taken during those times,” Ms. Dell’Anna said.

    “So, it is very accurate and everything you see in the movie’s actually happened at some point.”

    Despite serious lifelong sickness and with the help of other Italian nuns and volunteers in the notorious and often dangerous Five Points slum, Mother Cabrini took in orphans, fed, clothed and educated them.

    She was canonized for her work in 1946 – the first US citizen to be made a saint.

    “We’ve forgotten how to be inspired and I just think that Cabrini could very much aid that idea because it’s a true story, it’s a very compelling one,” Ms. Dell’Anna told UN News at the event, co-organized by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), the Permanent Mission of Italy and the Permanent Observer of the Holy See. 

    “And I just thought that starting a dialogue in that sense and being here, it could be a good starting point to maybe try and ground again certain ideas, or ideals and principles that should be our guidance through our daily life for everyone.”

    Trading places

    She added: “I often ask myself, ‘Where does the migrant stand today in a world where we – it’s easier to trade merchandise and it’s easy for things to travel around the world rather than human beings?’ We should probably reflect on these issues and understand where we place humankind compared to objects.”

    Latest UN estimates indicate that there are at least 281 million international migrants around the world, a number that has increased over the past five decades, with people continuing to move from their homelands driven by poverty, conflict and climate change.

    To accept the divisive and hateful rhetoric that this age-old phenomenon continues to generate is to forget our humanity, Ms. Dell’Anna maintains.

    “I think we should probably learn a lesson from this movie: migrants are not really doing well, especially in southern Italy, in the whole country, I’m afraid to say. The way we treat migrants has changed radically and they’ve become more of a threat rather than an integral part of society.”

    Dignified approach

    Thanks to a painstakingly researched backstory that covers the arc of Mother Cabrini’s life and campaigning work in rural northern Italy to her struggles against authority – and rank hostility in New York, Cabrini “gives us an opportunity – gave me an opportunity – to tell a little bit of what we went through when we were the ones migrating. Now, we are the ones actually denying the right of dignity, which in my opinion, is a universal right and should be recognized as such”, Ms. Dell’Anna explained.

    Asked what Mother Cabrini herself might have made of the film depicting her mission, with its sumptuous and at times soul-destroying cinematography, Ms. Dell’Anna replied confidently: “She would be really pleased that we are telling the story. Not because of her, but because of the other huge main character that is in the story, which is the migrant.

    “She’d be really pleased, because this is a very pertinent and contemporary issue…she was very pragmatic [so] she probably would say something like, ‘Press on.’”

    Soundcloud

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Gender Advisor (Programme Management Officer), P-4, Bangkok

    Source: UNISDR Disaster Risk Reduction

    Apply here

    Created in December 1999, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) is the designated focal point in the United Nations system for the coordination of efforts to reduce disasters and to ensure synergies among the disaster reduction activities of the United Nations and regional organizations and activities in both developed and less developed countries. Led by the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction (SRSG), UNDRR has over 150 staff located in its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, and in regional offices. Specifically, UNDRR guides, monitors, analyses and reports on progress in the implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, supports regional and national implementation of the Framework and catalyses action and increases global awareness to reduce disaster risk working with U.N. Member States and a broad range of partners and stakeholders, including civil society, the private sector, parliamentarians and the science and technology community. 

    The project position is located in the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific of United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), Bangkok. The incumbent reports to the Chief of Regional Office.

    Under the supervision and guidance of the Chief of Regional Office, the incumbent will be responsible for the following duties and responsibilities: 

    • Develops, implements and evaluates a regional program designed to enhance women’s leadership in disaster risk reduction in Asia-Pacific (WIN DRR), including liaising with relevant parties and ensuring follow-up actions, and supporting the expansion to other regions. This program will provide leadership skills training, expand networks and build partnerships to strengthen the role of women leaders in DRR. 
    • Facilitates and guides the integration of gender equality and disability inclusion into core UNDRR global processes, including strategic planning, programme management, resource mobilization, global and regional platforms, communications, staff training and partnerships. 
    • Leads UNDRR’s implementation of the Gender Action Plan to Support Implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, and initiates and coordinates outreach activities on gender-responsive DRR with UNDRR partners and stakeholder groups. 
    • Supports UNDRR’s commitment to, and implementation of, UN-wide gender initiatives and ensures appropriate reporting processes. 
    • Researches, analyzes and presents information related to inclusive disaster risk reduction, including gender equality, disability inclusion and human rights, gathered from diverse sources and provides recommendations to UNDRR SRSG, Director, management and staff to enhance inclusive and accessible DRR. 
    • Coordinates policy development related to gender equality, disability inclusion and human rights, including Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), the review and analysis of issues and trends at the global and regional levels. 
    • Promotes sex, age and disability disaggregated data and supports the use of gender data to improve Sendai Framework Monitoring and evidence-based decision making that leaves no one behind. 
    • Contributes technical expert advice on gender, women’s leadership and DRR and represents UNDRR at regional and national meetings where needed. 
    • Organizes and prepares written outputs related to gender equality and women’s leadership, disability inclusion and human rights e.g. draft background papers, speeches, analysis, sections of reports and studies, inputs to publications, etc. 
    • Supervises staff and coordinates activities related to budget funding (programme/project preparation and submissions, progress reports, financial statements, etc.) and prepares related documents/reports (pledging, work programme, programme budget, etc.). 
    • Performs other duties as required.

    PROFESSIONALISM: Shows pride in work and in achievements; Demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; Is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; Is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; Shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; Remains calm in stressful situations; Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work. 

    ACCOUNTABILITY: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; Delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; Operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; Supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; Takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable. 

    CREATIVITY: Actively seeks to improve programmes or services; offers new and different options to solve problems or meet client needs; promotes and persuades others to consider new ideas; takes calculated risks on new and unusual ideas; thinks “outside the box”; takes an interest in new ideas and new ways of doing things; is not bound by current thinking or traditional approaches.

    Advanced university degree (Master’s Degree or equivalent degree) in gender and women’s rights, development studies, social science or related humanities field, international relations, human rights, law, gender studies, or related area is required. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

    Not available.

    A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible programme management experience in gender mainstreaming, women’s leadership and disability inclusion in disaster risk management, humanitarian response, or development programming is required. 

    Experience in conducting gender analysis is required. 

    At least two years of experience designing and managing large projects is required. 

    At least two years of experience working in international organizations such as the United Nations or other comparable organizations is required. 

    Experience in developing partnerships and collaborative networks is desirable.

    Experience in improving organizational systems and processes to strengthen gender results is desirable.

    English and French are the two working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this position, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another UN official language is desirable.

    Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which will be followed by competency-based interview.

    Special Notice

    This is a project post. The appointment against this project position is limited to the duration of the project. The appointment or assignment and renewal thereof are subject to the availability of the post or funds, budgetary approval or extension of the mandate. At the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the recruitment and employment of staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity, with due regard to geographic diversity. All employment decisions are made on the basis of qualifications and organizational needs. The United Nations is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. The United Nations recruits and employs staff regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religious, cultural and ethnic backgrounds or disabilities. Reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities may be provided to support participation in the recruitment process when requested and indicated in the application. The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance in its staff. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position. In line with the overall United Nations policy, the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction encourages a positive workplace culture which embraces inclusivity and leverages diversity within its workforce. Measures are applied to enable all staff members to contribute equally and fully to the work and development of the organization, including flexible working arrangements, family-friendly policies and standards of conduct. Staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and to assignment by him or her. In this context, all staff are expected to move periodically to new functions in their careers in accordance with established rules and procedures. Pursuant to section 7.11 of ST/AI/2012/2/Rev.1, candidates recruited through the young professionals programme who have not served for a minimum of two years in the position of their initial assignment are not eligible to apply to this position. Individual contractors and consultants who have worked within the UN Secretariat in the last six months, irrespective of the administering entity, are ineligible to apply for professional and higher, temporary or fixed-term positions and their applications will not be considered.

    United Nations Considerations

    According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment. Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment. Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process. By accepting a letter of appointment, staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General, who may assign them to any of the activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). Further, staff members in the Professional and higher category up to and including the D-2 level and the Field Service category are normally required to move periodically to discharge functions in different duty stations under conditions established in ST/AI/2023/3 on Mobility, as may be amended or revised. This condition of service applies to all position specific job openings and does not apply to temporary positions. Applicants are urged to carefully follow all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira, and to refer to the Applicant Guide by clicking on “Manuals” in the “Help” tile of the inspira account-holder homepage. The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application. Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

    No Fee

    THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.

    Apply here

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Climate emergency: 2025 declared international year of glaciers

    Source: United Nations MIL OSI

    By Pia Blondel

    Climate and Environment

    As glaciers disappear at an alarming rate due to climate change, the UN General Assembly has declared 2025 the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation (IYGP).

    Co-facilitated by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), this global initiative seeks to unite efforts worldwide to protect these vital water sources, which provide freshwater to more than 2 billion people.

    Glaciers and ice sheets hold around 70 per cent of the world’s freshwater and their rapid loss presents an urgent environmental and humanitarian crisis.

    WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo emphasised this urgency, saying “Melting ice and glaciers threaten long-term water security for many millions of people. This international year must be a wake-up call to the world.”

    Alarming data

    In 2023, glaciers experienced their greatest water loss in over 50 years, marking the second consecutive year in which all glaciated regions worldwide reported ice loss.

    Switzerland, for instance, saw their glaciers lose 10 per cent of their total mass between 2022 and 2023, according to the WMO.

    Dr. Lydia Brito, UNESCO’s Assistant Director-General for Natural Sciences, explained during the launch event in Geneva that the “50 UNESCO heritage sites with glaciers represent almost 10 per cent of Earth’s glacier area.” However, a recent study warned that glaciers in one-third of these sites are projected to disappear by 2050.

    With 2024 confirmed as the hottest year on record, the need for immediate and decisive action has never been more critical.

    2025 key initiatives

    A key focus, the panel explained, is raising global awareness about the essential role glaciers, snow and ice play in regulating the climate and supporting ecosystems and communities.

    “Glaciers don’t care if we believe in science – they just melt in the heat,” said Dr. Carolina Adler of the Mountain Research Initiative.

    The initiative also aims to enhance scientific understanding through programmes like the Global Cryosphere Watch, ensuring that data guides effective climate action.

    Strengthening policy frameworks is another priority, with the integration of glacier preservation into global and national climate strategies, such as the Paris Agreement.

    Mobilising financial resources is another priority – essential to support vulnerable communities and fund adaptation and mitigation efforts – alongside engaging youth and local communities.

    Milestones on climate

    The first World Glacier Day will be celebrated on 21 March 2025, coinciding with World Water Day, coming a day later.

    In May, Tajikistan will host the International Glacier Preservation Conference, bringing together scientists, policymakers and community leaders to discuss solutions and form partnerships.

    “Tajikistan is immensely proud to have played an instrumental role in advocating for this resolution,” said Bahodur Sheralizoda, Chair of Tajikistan’s Committee of Environmental Protection.

    “Let us be clear, the only way to preserve glaciers as an important resource for the entire planet is for all governments to collectively course correct with Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) fully consistent with the 1.5°C Paris Agreement limit,” he underscored.

    Challenges ahead

    According to the policy brief on the IYGP, “Some level of glacier loss remains inevitable given current loss rates, which modelling shows will continue until temperatures stabilise.”

    “We must prepare for cryospheric destruction through urgent policy changes,” explained Dr. John Pomeroy from the University of Saskatchewan.

    These efforts will require global cooperation, particularly in regions like Central Asia, where glacier loss has led to significant water security challenges.

    “In Tajikistan alone nearly 1,000 glaciers have melted, accounting for one-third of the country’s glacier volume,” Dr. Brito highlighted.

    A shared responsibility

    The IYGP seeks to unite nations, organizations and individuals in a common mission.

    “[It] provides a mechanism to kick start both renewed efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase the science and adaptation necessary to prepare for a warmer, less icy world,” said Dr. Pomeroy

    “History will record that 2025 was the tipping point where humanity changed course and eventually saved the glaciers, ourselves and our planet,” he concluded.

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: At Davos, Guterres slams backsliding on climate commitments

    Source: United Nations MIL OSI

    UN Affairs

    The world’s political and business elite present in Davos on Wednesday faced an uncompromising address from UN chief António Guterres as he rounded on a lack of multilateral collaboration in an “increasingly rudderless world” at risk from two existential dangers: climate change and unregulated Artificial Intelligence (AI).

    Mr. Guterres was speaking at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, the exclusive event held high in the Swiss Alps where senior politicians, Heads of State and CEOs of some of the world’s biggest and most influential companies rub shoulders.

    The UN Secretary-General took aim at the theme of this year’s meeting, Collaboration for the Intelligent Age, maintaining that there has been scant proof of either collaboration or intelligence and plenty of evidence that many of the world’s problems are worsening, from conflicts to inequality and assaults on human rights.

    Nuclear war is no longer the only existential threat to humanity, he said, pointing to the climate crisis and the “ungoverned expansion” of Artificial Intelligence (AI).

    ‘Fossil fuel addiction’

    Likening fossil fuel addiction to Frankenstein’s monster – “sparing nothing and no one” – the Secretary-General noted the irony that 13 of the world’s biggest ports for oil supertankers are set to be overwhelmed by rising sea levels, a consequence of rising temperatures and sea ice melt, caused overwhelmingly by burning coal, crude oil and natural gas.

    A number of financial institutions and industries are backtracking on climate commitments, noted Mr. Guterres.

    A move that is, he said “short-sighted, and paradoxically, it is selfish and also self-defeating. You are on the wrong side of history. You are on the wrong side of science. And you are on the wrong side of consumers who are looking for more sustainability, not less.”

    Looking ahead to the UN Climate Conference (COP30) in Brazil at the end of the year, the UN chief reminded world leaders that they must keep their promise to produce new, economy-wide national climate action plans well before the event.

    Developing countries need a “surge in finance” for climate action, he declared, urging not just governments but all businesses and financial institutions to create robust and accountable transition plans.

    AI’s untold promise 

    The next existential threat, AI, is a double-edged sword, Mr. Guterres continued, as it is already revolutionizing learning, diagnosing illnesses, helping farmers to increase their yields and improving the targeting of aid.

    But it comes with profound risks if it is left ungoverned: it can disrupt economies, undermine trust in institutions and deepen inequalities, the Secretary-General warned.

    The Global Digital Compact – part of the Pact for the Future adopted by UN Member States last September – offers a “roadmap to harness the immense potential of digital technology and close digital divides” with a shared vision of AI serving humanity, not the other way around.

    Despite the challenges, the UN will never halt its demand for peace grounded in the UN Charter, international law and the principles of sovereignty, political independence and the territorial integrity of States, he said.

    Reforming institutions, from the global financial architecture to the UN Security Council, is, the UN chief asserted, a necessity because systems of governance are often ill-equipped to deal with today’s challenges. But achieving these essential changes – which world leaders committed to at last September’s Summit of the Future – will only be possible with political will, he said, cautioning: “I am not convinced leaders get it.”

    The Secretary-General concluded his remarks with a return to the theme of this year’s Davos event, appealing to the global community to face these existential challenges head on and work as one. 

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: AI Action Summit co-chaired by France and India (February 10-11, 2025)

    Source: France-Diplomatie – Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Development

    Statement on inclusive and sustainable artificial intelligence for people and the planet

    1. Participants from over 100 countries, including government leaders, international organizations, representatives of civil society, the private sector and the academic and research communities gathered in Paris on February 10 and 11, 2025 to hold the AI Action Summit. Rapid development of AI technologies represents a major paradigm shift, impacting our citizens and societies in many ways. In line with the Paris Pact for People and the Planet, and the principles that countries must have ownership of their transition strategies, we have identified priorities and launched concrete actions to advance the public interest and to bridge digital divides through accelerating progress towards the SDGs. Our actions are grounded in three main principles of science, solutions – focusing on open AI models in compliance with countries’ frameworks – and policy standards, in line with international frameworks.

    2. This Summit has highlighted the importance of reinforcing the diversity of the AI ecosystem. It has laid an open, multi-stakeholder and inclusive approach that will enable AI to be human rights based, human-centric, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy while also stressing the need and urgency to narrow the inequalities and assist developing countries in artificial intelligence capacity-building so they can build AI capacities.

    3. Acknowledging existing multilateral initiatives on AI, including the United Nations General Assembly Resolutions, the Global Digital Compact, the UNESCO Recommendation on Ethics of AI, the African Union Continental AI Strategy, and the works of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the Council of Europe and European Union, the G7 including the Hiroshima AI Process and G20, we have affirmed the following main priorities:

    • Promoting AI accessibility to reduce digital divides;
    • Ensuring AI is open, inclusive, transparent, ethical, safe, secure and trustworthy, taking into account international frameworks for all
    • Making innovation in AI thrive by enabling conditions for its development and avoiding market concentration driving industrial recovery and development
    • Encouraging AI deployment that positively shapes the future of work and labour markets and delivers opportunity for sustainable growth
    • Making AI sustainable for people and the planet
    • Reinforcing international cooperation to promote coordination in international governance

    To deliver on these priorities:

    • Founding members have launched a major Public Interest AI Platform and Incubator, to support, amplify, decrease fragmentation between existing public and private initiatives on Public Interest AI and address digital divides. The Public Interest AI Initiative will sustain and support digital public goods and technical assistance and capacity-building projects in data, model development, openness and transparency, audit, compute, talent, financing and collaboration to support and co-create a trustworthy AI ecosystem advancing the public interest of all, for all and by all.
    • We have discussed, at a Summit for the first time and in a multi-stakeholder format, issues related to AI and energy. This discussion has led to sharing knowledge to foster investments for sustainable AI systems (hardware, infrastructure, models), to promoting an international discussion on AI and environment, to welcoming an observatory on the energy impact of AI with the International Energy Agency, to showcasing energy-friendly AI innovation.

    We recognize the need to enhance our shared knowledge on the impacts of AI in the job market, though the creation of network of observatories, to better anticipate AI implications for workplaces, training and education and to use AI to foster productivity, skill development, quality and working conditions and social dialogue.

    4. We recognize the need for inclusive multistakeholder dialogues and cooperation on AI governance. We underline the need for a global reflection integrating inter alia questions of safety, sustainable development, innovation, respect of international laws including humanitarian law and human rights law and the protection of human rights, gender equality, linguistic diversity, protection of consumers and of intellectual property rights. We take notes of efforts and discussions related to international fora where AI governance is examined. As outlined in the Global Digital Compact adopted by the UN General Assembly, participants also reaffirmed their commitment to initiate a Global Dialogue on AI governance and the Independent International Scientific Panel on AI and to align ongoing governance efforts, ensuring complementarity and avoiding duplication.

    5. Harnessing the benefits of AI technologies to support our economies and societies depends on advancing Trust and Safety. We commend the role of the Bletchley Park AI Safety Summit and Seoul Summits that have been essential in progressing international cooperation on AI safety and we note the voluntary commitments launched there. We will keep addressing the risks of AI to information integrity and continue the work on AI transparency.

    6. We look forward to next AI milestones such as the Kigali Summit, the 3rd Global Forum on the Ethics of AI hosted by Thailand and UNESCO, the 2025 World AI Conference and the AI for Good Global Summit 2025 to follow up on our commitments and continue to take concrete actions aligned with a sustainable and inclusive AI.

    Signatory countries:

    1. Armenia

    2. Australia

    3. Austria

    4. Belgium

    5. Brazil

    6. Bulgaria

    7. Cambodia

    8. Canada

    9. Chile

    10. China

    11. Croatia

    12. Cyprus

    13. Czechia

    14. Denmark

    15. Djibouti

    16. Estonia

    17. Finland

    18. France

    19. Germany

    20. Greece

    21. Hungary

    22. India

    23. Indonesia

    24. Ireland

    25. Italy

    26. Japan

    27. Kazakhstan

    28. Kenya

    29. Latvia

    30. Lithuania

    31. Luxembourg

    32. Malta

    33. Mexico

    34. Monaco

    35. Morocco

    36. New Zealand

    37. Nigeria

    38. Norway

    39. Poland

    40. Portugal

    41. Romania

    42. Rwanda

    43. Senegal

    44. Serbia

    45. Singapore

    46. Slovakia

    47. Slovenia

    48. South Africa

    49. Republic of Korea

    50. Spain

    51. Sweden

    52. Switzerland

    53. Thailand

    54. Netherlands

    55. United Arab Emirates

    56. Ukraine

    57. Uruguay

    58. Vatican

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Previously Convicted Felon from Swissvale Indicted for Possession of Firearm

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

    PITTSBURH, Pa. – A resident of Swissvale, Pennsylvania, has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on a charge of violating a federal firearms law, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today.

    The one-count Indictment named Robert Prater, 33, as the sole defendant.

    According to the Indictment, on or about January 27, 2025, Prater possessed a firearm as a convicted felon. Federal law prohibits an individual who has been convicted of a felony from possessing a firearm or ammunition.

    The law provides for a maximum total sentence of up to 15 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, or both. Under the federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offense and the prior criminal history of the defendant.

    Assistant United States Attorney Michael R. Ball is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

    The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment.

    This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

    An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Serbia: €29 million invested under the EU for Green Agenda initiative

    Source: European Investment Bank

    EIB

    As part of the EU for Green Agenda initiative in Serbia, EIB Global co-organised the conference on boosting green transition financing in Serbia, together with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Delegation of the European Union to Serbia, and the Ministry of Environmental Protection, in cooperation with the Association of Serbian Banks.

    Head of the EIB Regional Hub for the Western Balkans Damien Sorrell underlined the “EU for Green Agenda in Serbia” initiative as an excellent example of how we can catalyse green investments and increase resilience to climate change.

    “This is particularly important for local companies, 10% of which are already reporting losses from natural disasters. However, due to a lack of access to finance, expertise in developing green projects, and conducive green management practices, they are not sufficiently equipped to incorporate climate concerns into their management frameworks. That is why the technical support provided by the EIB to banks under the EU for Green Agenda is crucial. It will help turn innovative climate-friendly ideas into bankable projects,” Sorrell said.

    “The establishment of an effective mechanism for sustainable financing of the green transition is crucial for the competitiveness of the Serbian economy and the creation of new jobs, as well as for people’s health and the environment. This requires the cooperation of the government, international financial institutions, commercial banks and the private sector, which we have gathered today to achieve a common vision for accelerating the green transition in Serbia”” said Yakup Beris, UNDP Serbia Resident Representative.

    The “EU for Green Agenda in Serbia” project is implemented with technical and financial support of the European Union and in partnership with the Ministry of Environmental Protection by UNDP in cooperation with Sweden and EIB Global, with additional funding from the governments of Sweden, Switzerland and Serbia.

    Dedicated workshops for financial institutions

    Since 2022, this initiative has provided mentoring support and €4 million in co-financing for the implementation of innovative green projects across Serbia. For every euro of donor support, nearly €6 has been raised from other sources, including the beneficiaries’ own funds. As a result, over €29 million has been invested so far, which accounts for approximately 15% of all estimated green investments in Serbia.

    Through workshops conducted by the consulting consortia adelphi, iC Group and IPC, EIB Global is providing the technical assistance for partner financial institutions to equip them with the tools and knowledge to support implementation of the Green Agenda. Facilitated by experts in green finance, environmental policy and EU regulations, the workshops are aimed at building capacity to evaluate and finance green projects, ensuring alignment with EU sustainability criteria.

    Aleksandar Randjelović, an expert in the “EU for Green Agenda in Serbia” project, stated that the training provided by the consulting team introduced financial institutions to key concepts of green finance, emphasising their role in driving the transition to a low-carbon and climate-resilient economy. “Finance is the fuel of this transformation, and understanding climate risks and opportunities is essential for making impactful investments that align with the country’s Green Agenda,” he stated.

    UniCredit Bank Serbia has been one of the participants in the specialised training programme.

    “The workshop provided us with a deep understanding of the EU Green Agenda’s goals and practical strategies to align our financial products with sustainability principles. Through expert-led sessions, we gained insights into financing green projects, structuring innovative financial products, and adhering to EU environmental standards,” said Maja Jerkić Bogosavljević, Head of ESG at UniCredit Bank

    Serbia: €29 million invested under the EU for Green Agenda initiative
    Serbia: €29 million invested under the EU for Green Agenda initiative
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    Serbia: €29 million invested under the EU for Green Agenda initiative
    Serbia: €29 million invested under the EU for Green Agenda initiative
    ©EIB
    Download original
    Serbia: €29 million invested under the EU for Green Agenda initiative
    Serbia: €29 million invested under the EU for Green Agenda initiative
    ©EIB
    Download original
    Serbia: €29 million invested under the EU for Green Agenda initiative
    Serbia: €29 million invested under the EU for Green Agenda initiative
    ©EIB
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    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Federal Councillor Albert Rösti at the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit in Paris

    Source: Switzerland – Federal Administration in English

    At the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit in Paris on 10 and 11 February, Federal Councillor Albert Rösti highlighted the opportunities that AI offers to society and the economy. In particular, he stressed the need to adopt an inclusive approach in the global debate on AI. Switzerland has also expressed an interest in hosting the next AI Action Summit. He also signed two memorandums of understanding with French Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot aimed at developing cross-border rail traffic between Switzerland and France.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: How botox enters our cells

    Source: Switzerland – Department of Foreign Affairs in English

    Researchers at the Center for Life Sciences at the Paul Scherrer Institute PSI have for the first time identified structural changes in the botulinum neurotoxin, botox for short, that are believed to be crucial for its uptake into nerve cells. This could mean that the paralysing effect of this potent neurotoxin could be used more selectively and efficiently in the future, for example in pain therapy. The study was published today in the journal Nature Communications.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Energy Transfer thinks they can silence us

    Source: Greenpeace Statement –

    © Tegan Gregory / Greenpeace

    Big Oil company Energy Transfer is trying to silence Greenpeace with a $300,000,000 lawsuit. If we actually had to pay that amount, Greenpeace USA could shut down.

    This lawsuit from Energy Transfer against Greenpeace USA and Greenpeace International includes a racist attempted rewrite of the history of the Indigenous-led protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline. It’s also Big Oil’s message to environmentalists everywhere: if you dare to criticize us, you could be next.

    The world has taken notice. 

    Word of this threat to the entire climate justice movement has spread across the world, and over the last few months, thousands of Greenpeace activists, allies, and supporters in more than two dozen countries have responded to Big Oil in one unified voice.

    Our message is loud and clear: we will not be silenced. And that message is now echoing across the planet.

    Take a look at these photos from more than 25 different countries — as you scroll, think about what our movement is capable of when we work together.

    United States

    © Tim Aubry / Greenpeace

    Netherlands

    © Gosse Bouma / Greenpeace

    Germany

    © Markus J. Feger / Greenpeace

    Czech Republic

    © Ray Baseley / Greenpeace

    Sweden

    © Jana Eriksson / Greenpeace

    Denmark

    © Philip Raissnia / Greenpeace

    Indonesia

    © Pangeran / Greenpeace

    Thailand

    © Purimpat Jansuwan / Greenpeace

    Croatia

    © Maja Bota / Greenpeace

    Norway

    © Greenpeace

    Poland

    © Greenpeace / Max Zielinski

    United Kingdom

    © David Mirzoeff / Greenpeace

    Brazil

    © Victor Bravo / Greenpeace

    Hungary

    © Zsuzsi Dorgo / Greenpeace

    Switzerland

    © Maksym Zaika / Greenpeace

    France

    © Fanny Noret / Greenpeace

    Philippines

    © Greenpeace

    Spain

    © Greenpeace / Pablo Blazquez

    Finland

    © Heikki S. Laherma / Greenpeace

    Greece

    © Evelina Manou / Greenpeace

    Mexico

    © Prometeo Lucero / Greenpeace

    Slovenia

    © Petra Godeša / Greenpeace

    Romania

    © Ioana Moldovan / Greenpeace

    Ukraine

    © Greenpeace

    Aotearoa

    © Clae Baxter / Greenpeace

    Australia

    © Greenpeace / Toby Davidson

    Belgium

    © Mathieu Soete / Greenpeace

    Germany. Indonesia. Thailand. Poland. Brazil. Hungary. France. Spain. Greece. Mexico. Australia. Belgium.

    Greenpeace is a global movement. Environmental justice is a global movement. 

    That’s what Big Oil fails to understand: if they try to silence one of us, millions more will speak out. We will not be silenced. We cannot be silenced.

    Big Oil knows that free speech and protest are the best tools we have to demand a green and just world, and they’re afraid of what happens when we exercise those rights. So that’s what we’re going to continue doing.

    Recently, we launched an open letter to pressure Energy Transfer to drop their lawsuit. We’re proud to say that hundreds of thousands of people have now signed it, along with more than 400 organizations representing millions of people around the world.

    With less than two weeks until we go to trial in North Dakota, we must keep raising our voices.

    In September, The Wall Street Journal reported that “some oil-and-gas investors expressed concerns” about Energy Transfer’s $300 million lawsuit against us. Their concern? “It makes the industry look vindictive and could result in a reinvigorated protest movement.”

    That’s precisely what Energy Transfer has ignited — a reinvigorated movement.

    We all know that Big Oil has infinite sums of money, and immense power. And it’s true that a defeat in court could threaten Greenpeace USA’s existence, and have far-reaching implications for the climate justice movement around the world.

    But we will not be silenced.

    Sign our open letter to Energy Transfer

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI: Hivello Token ($HVLO) now Live

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    TORONTO, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Blockmate Ventures Inc (TSX.V: MATE) (OTCQB: MATEF) (FSE: 8MH1) (“Blockmate” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that its majority-owned subsidiary, Hivello Holdings Ltd, has had its $HVLO token commence trading on leading exchanges, Gate.io and MEXC.

    $HVLO’s token listing should unlock greater passive income functionality for its users and attract new ones. Ultimately, the token will enable more users to participate in blockchain mining, earn rewards, and leverage the token’s utility across the growing DePIN ecosystem.

    This milestone marks a significant step in Hivello’s mission to revolutionize the Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePIN) space by enabling seamless participation in decentralized computing. By connecting unused computing resources to decentralized networks, Hivello users can earn rewards while strengthening the DePIN ecosystem.

    With over fifteen thousand nodes already active in its beta application, Hivello is leading the DePIN aggregation space. The platform’s plug-and-play mining model removes the complexity of blockchain mining, making it accessible to both novice and experienced users.

    Blockmate has not directly issued any tokens or received any proceeds from the token listing. The tokens are issued by the Swiss-based HVLO Association, under licence from Hivello Holdings Ltd.

    Below is the press release from Hivello:

    Hivello’s $HVLO Token Live on Gate.io and MEXC exchanges

    London & Amsterdam, 11th February 2025 – Hivello, a DePIN aggregator that enables users to earn by monetising idle computer resources across multiple decentralised networks, has announced their Token Generation Event (TGE) is live, and the $HVLO token is officially trading. This marks a significant milestone in Hivello’s mission to redefine- and expand the DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks) ecosystem.

    Key Dates and times:

    • Gate.io – 11 February 2025, 10 AM UTC
    • MEXC – 11 February 2025, 10 AM UTC
    • Raydium.io (Solana DEX) – 12 February 2025, 11AM UTC

    The company requests that interested individuals visit Hivello’s official website www.hivello.com for all the latest information, including the Contract Address (CA) for the smart contract.

    The $HVLO token is important in Hivello’s ecosystem, incentivizing users to contribute compute, storage, and networking resources to DePIN protocols. By listing on Gate.io and MEXC, two of the industry’s leading centralized exchanges, and Raydium, the largest decentralized exchange (DEX) on Solana, Hivello is ensuring deep liquidity and accessibility for a wide range of users.

    Now that $HVLO is live on multiple exchanges, multiple benefits exist:

    • Stake $HVLO via www.hivello.com for an APY of 88%.
    • Expanding accessibility and benefits of $HVLO, enabling more users to participate in decentralized compute mining, earn rewards, and leverage the token’s utility across the growing DePIN ecosystem.
    • Enhancing staking and governance functionalities for $HVLO holders, ensuring long-term engagement and sustainability.
    • Expanding partnerships with DePIN protocols and AI compute networks, driving broader adoption of decentralized infrastructure.
    • Scaling its network of decentralized node operators, making it easier for users worldwide to contribute to DePIN.

    Hivello will be running an X Space event for people to tune in, details below:

    For the latest updates on staking, rewards, and DePIN integrations, users are encouraged to follow Hivello’s official channels:

    Domenic Carosa, Co-Founder & Chairman of Hivello, stated:

    “Launching $HVLO and listing it on Gate.io, MEXC, and Raydium is a major achievement for Hivello and our growing community. These listings provide global accessibility, allowing more users to engage with decentralized compute and earn rewards through DePIN.”

    About Gate.io

    Founded in 2013, Gate.io is one of the top 5 cryptocurrency exchanges globally by real trading volume, providing secure, reliable, transparent, and authentic digital asset trading services to over 20 million users. For more information, visit www.gate.io.

    About MEXC
    Established in 2018, MEXC serves more than 30 million users in more than 170 countries. MEXC has an extensive range of popular tokens and airdrop options. Their platform provides safe and effective access to digital assets, catering to both novice traders and seasoned investors. MEXC places an emphasis on innovation and simplicity, which increases the accessibility and profitability of token trading.

    About Hivello
    Hivello is a DePIN aggregator that enables users to earn by monetising idle computer resources across multiple decentralised networks. The Swiss-based HVLO Association will issue the $HVLO token under license from Hivello Holdings Ltd.
    For more information about Hivello and to stay updated on its developments, visit www.hivello.com

    About Blockmate Ventures Inc.
    Blockmate Ventures is a venture creator focussing on building fast-growing technology businesses relating to cutting-edge sectors such as blockchain, AI and renewable energy. Working with prospective founders, projects in incubation can benefit from the Blockmate ecosystem that offers tech, services, integrations and advice to accelerate the incubation of projects towards monetization. Recent projects include Hivello (download the free passive income app at www.hivello.com) and Sunified, digitising solar energy.

    The leadership team at Blockmate Ventures have successfully founded successful tech companies from the Dotcom era through to the social media era. Learn more about being a Blockmate at: www.blockmate.com.

    Blockmate welcomes investors to join the Company’s mailing list for the latest updates and industry research by subscribing at https://www.blockmate.com/subscribe.

    ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

    Justin Rosenberg, CEO
    Blockmate Ventures Inc
    justin@blockmate.com
    (+1-580-262-6130)

    Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release

    Forward-Looking Information
    This news release contains “forward-looking statements” or “forward-looking information” (collectively, “forward-looking statements”) within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements and are based on the assumptions, expectations, estimates and projections as of the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements contained herein. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Raindrop disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI: Turbo Energy Welcomes International Business Executive Julian Groves to Board of Directors

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    VALENCIA, Spain, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Turbo Energy, S.A. (NASDAQ:TURB) (“Turbo Energy” or the “Company”), a global provider of leading-edge, AI-optimized solar energy storage technologies and solutions, today announced the appointment of Julian Groves to the Company’s Board of Directors, which was approved by the Company’s shareholders on December 18, 2024 at the Extraordinary General Meeting of Shareholders.

    Turbo Energy Welcomes Julian Groves to Board of Directors 

    Groves brings Turbo Energy extensive experience in commercial strategy, geographic market expansion, worldwide product distribution and logistics, capital formation, private equity investments and corporate governance, as well as nearly three decades of experience leading business-to-business, direct-to-consumer, retail, wholesale and ecommerce initiatives for numerous iconic global brands in both the public and private sectors.       

    Since February 2019, Groves has served as Chief Operating Officer and executive member of the Board of MGO Global, Inc., a Nasdaq-listed company engaged in global commercialization of digitally-native lifestyle brands that have included both legendary soccer icon Leo Messi’s apparel brand, Messi Brand, and Stand Flagpoles. In this role, he has helped MGO raise tens of millions in pre-IPO, IPO and follow-on financings and is currently working to complete MGO’s business combination with one of the world’s leading commercial and pool management businesses serving the crude oil and refined petroleum tanker market in a transaction expected to be valued at more than $300 million. 

    Previously, Groves served as CEO of EC2M Holdings, a lifestyle brand-building company which owned and operated London Persona, a growing men’s lifestyle brand launched as a direct-to-consumer shopping experience for men seeking season-to-season high-end wardrobes. EC2M also represented the lifestyle brand Trickers throughout North America and Canada, charged with developing and managing the brand’s B2B channel. Other former senior executive posts have included Sales Director, EMEA of J Brand Europe, a premium, American denim clothing company in which Fast Retailing acquired an 80% stake for $290 million in 2012. As General Manager, EMEA of True Religion, Julian had full profit and loss (P&L) responsibility for the region, overseeing corporate operations in Switzerland and managing full P&L responsibility for the growing, fashion-forward denim brand.

    In August 2007, Julian was recruited by GUESS Europe to serve as Country Manager of the casual lifestyle brand’s operations in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Under his proven leadership, GUESS Europe opened 32 concessions and 22 retail shops, including GUESS’ Central London flagship store. Earlier in his distinguished career, he was General Manager, UK and Ireland, for Groupe Zannier International from September 2004 through 2007; United Kingdom Sales Director for Burberry from September 2001 through 2004; and United Kingdom Sales Manager for LVMH Kenzo Homme UK Ltd. from November 1997 through August 2001.

    Commenting on Groves’ appointment to the Board Enrique Selva, Chairman of the Board of Turbo Energy, stated, “I am delighted to welcome Julian to Turbo Energy’s Board and believe that his deep understanding of business strategy and global market penetration will have a significant impact on Turbo Energy’s planned expansion initiatives – with particular emphasis on commercialization of our SUNBOX Home solar energy storage technologies in the United States. He represents an outstanding addition to our Board and his unique and proven skillset is expected to greatly complement and enhance the overall strength and depth of capabilities of our leadership.”

    About Turbo Energy, S.A.

    Founded in 2013, Turbo Energy is a globally recognized pioneer of proprietary solar energy storage technologies and solutions managed through Artificial Intelligence. Turbo Energy’s elegant all-in-one and scalable, modular energy storage systems empower residential, commercial and industrial users expanding across Europe, North America and South America to materially reduce dependence on traditional energy sources, helping to lower electricity costs, provide peak shaving and uninterruptible power supply and realize a more sustainable, energy-efficient future. A testament to the Company’s commitment to innovation and industry disruption, Turbo Energy’s introduction of its flagship SUNBOX represents one of the world’s first high performance, competitively priced, all-in-one home solar energy storage systems, which also incorporates patented EV charging capability and powerful AI processes to optimize solar energy management. Turbo Energy is a proud subsidiary of publicly traded Umbrella Global Energy, S.A., a vertically integrated, global collective of solar energy-focused companies. For more information, please visit www.turbo-e.com.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    Statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects, as well as any other statements regarding matters that are not historical facts, may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are neither historical facts nor assurances of future performance. Instead, they are based only on current beliefs, expectations and assumptions regarding the future of the business of the Company, future plans and strategies, projections, anticipated events and trends, the economy and other future conditions. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “target,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. Because forward-looking statements relate to the future, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and many of which are outside of our control, including the risks described in our registration statements and annual report under the heading “Risk Factors” as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Actual results and financial condition may differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements. Therefore, you should not rely on any of these forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof, and Turbo Energy, S.A. specifically disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

    For more information, please contact:
    At Turbo Energy, S.A.                                                 
    Dodi Handy, Director of Communications                        
    Phone: 407-960-4636                                                    
    Email: dodihandy@turbo-e.com 

    Attachment

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Two new fish species discovered in Swiss waters

    Source: Switzerland – Department of Foreign Affairs in English

    The public can take part in a survey to decide on the names of two fish species discovered by researchers from the University of Bern, the Natural History Museum of Bern and the Aquatic Research Institute Eawag. In this interview, biologist Bárbara Calegari explains where they live and how to make the diversity of our waters visible.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI: Royalty Pharma Reports Q4 and Full Year 2024 Results

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    • Portfolio Receipts of $742 million in Q4 2024 and $2,801 million for FY 2024
    • Royalty Receipts growth of 12% in Q4 2024 and 13% for FY 2024
    • Net cash provided by operating activities of $743 million in Q4 2024 and $2,769 million for FY 2024
    • Full year 2025 guidance: Portfolio Receipts expected to be $2,900 to $3,050 million excluding future transactions

    NEW YORK, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Royalty Pharma plc (Nasdaq: RPRX) today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2024 and introduced full year 2025 guidance for Portfolio Receipts.

    “We had an incredibly successful 2024, delivering double-digit growth in Royalty Receipts, which was significantly above our initial guidance, and deploying $2.8 billion of capital on value-enhancing royalties” said Pablo Legorreta, Royalty Pharma’s founder and Chief Executive Officer. “We are very excited for the opportunities ahead as the fundamentals of our business have never been stronger. Additionally, we have already taken two major steps at the start of 2025 to enhance shareholder value, announcing the acquisition of our external manager, which is expected to result in multiple financial and strategic benefits, and a new $3 billion share repurchase program, which highlights the confidence we have in our business and the attractive value we see in our shares. With a robust transaction pipeline and significant financial flexibility, I am confident that Royalty Pharma is well positioned to deliver attractive, compounding growth over the long term.”

    Strong Royalty Receipts growth; Portfolio Receipts growth impacted by a high base of comparison

    • Royalty Receipts grew 12% to $729 million in the fourth quarter and 13% to $2,771 million for full year 2024, driven by strong performance from Evrysdi, the CF franchise, Trelegy, Tremfya and new royalty acquisitions.
    • Portfolio Receipts increased 1% to $742 million in the fourth quarter of 2024; Portfolio Receipts decreased 8% from $3,049 million to $2,801 million for full year 2024, largely reflecting $525 million in Biohaven-related milestone payments received in 2023.

    Capital Deployment of $2.8 billion in 2024 with royalties on eight new therapies added to the portfolio

    • Record year for synthetic royalty transactions for Royalty Pharma with $925 million announced in 2024.
    • Significantly expanded development-stage portfolio by acquiring royalties on four potential new therapies.

    Exciting new product launches expected across the royalty portfolio in 2025

    • Royalty Pharma to benefit in 2025 from new product launches, including Servier’s Voranigo, Bristol Myers Squibb’s Cobenfy, Ascendis’ Yorvipath, Syndax and Incyte’s Niktimvo and Geron’s Rytelo.

    Financial guidance for full year 2025 (excludes contribution from future transactions)

    • Royalty Pharma expects 2025 Portfolio Receipts to be between $2,900 million and $3,050 million, representing expected growth of 4% to 9%.

    Financial & Liquidity Summary

      Three Months Ended
    December 31,    		 Twelve Months Ended
    December 31,
      (unaudited)
    ($ and shares in millions) 2024 2023 Change 2024 2023 Change
    Portfolio Receipts 742 736 1% 2,801 3,049 (8)%
    Net cash provided by operating activities 743 773 (4)% 2,769 2,988 (7)%
    Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP)* 669 682 (2)% 2,565 2,806 (9)%
    Portfolio Cash Flow (non-GAAP)* 678 687 (1)% 2,452 2,708 (9)%
    Weighted average Class A ordinary shares outstanding – diluted 589 598 (1)% 594 603 (1)%

    *See “Liquidity and Capital Resources” section. Adjusted EBITDA and Portfolio Cash Flow are non-GAAP liquidity measures calculated in accordance with the credit agreement.

    Portfolio Receipts Highlights

          Three Months Ended December 31,
          (unaudited)
    ($ in millions)     2024 2023 Change
    Products: Marketers: Therapeutic Area:      
    Cystic fibrosis franchise Vertex Rare disease 237 207 14%
    Trelegy GSK Respiratory 74 60 23%
    Tysabri Biogen Neuroscience 61 68 (11)%
    Evrysdi Roche Rare disease 56 20 182%
    Xtandi Pfizer, Astellas Cancer 46 38 20%
    Imbruvica AbbVie, J&J Cancer 46 50 (10)%
    Promacta Novartis Hematology 44 44 (1)%
    Tremfya Johnson & Johnson Immunology 39 35 11%
    Cabometyx/Cometriq Exelixis, Ipsen, Takeda Cancer 20 18 11%
    Spinraza Biogen Rare disease 15 17 (13)%
    Orladeyo BioCryst Rare disease 11 8 36%
    Trodelvy Gilead Cancer 11 10 10%
    Erleada Johnson & Johnson Cancer 11 9 25%
    Nurtec ODT/Zavzpret Pfizer Neuroscience 7 5 49%
    Other products(5) 54 63 (14)%
    Royalty Receipts 729 651 12%
    Milestones and other contractual receipts 13 84 (85)%
    Portfolio Receipts 742 736 1%

    Results for full year 2024 and 2023 are shown in Table 5. Amounts shown in the table may not add due to rounding.

    Royalty Receipts was $729 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, an increase of 12% as compared to $651 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. The increase was primarily driven by strong growth from Evrysdi, the cystic fibrosis franchise, Trelegy, Xtandi and Tremfya. Royalty receipts from Evrysdi included the benefit of the additional royalties acquired in October 2023 and June 2024.

    Portfolio Receipts was $742 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, an increase of 1% as compared to $736 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. The increase was primarily driven by the same Royalty Receipts increases noted above, offset by a decrease in milestones and other contractual receipts, which reflected a $50 million payment related to the oral formulation of zavegepant in the prior period.

    Liquidity and Capital Resources

    Royalty Pharma’s liquidity and capital resources are summarized below:

    As of December 31, 2024, Royalty Pharma had cash and cash equivalents of $929 million and total debt with principal value of $7.8 billion.

    During the fourth quarter of 2024, Royalty Pharma repurchased approximately two million Class A ordinary shares for $50 million. For full year 2024, Royalty Pharma repurchased approximately eight million Class A ordinary shares for $230 million. The weighted-average number of diluted Class A ordinary shares outstanding for the fourth quarter of 2024 was 589 million as compared to 598 million for the fourth quarter of 2023. The weighted-average number of diluted Class A ordinary shares outstanding for full year 2024 was 594 million as compared to 603 million for full year 2023.

    In January 2025, Royalty Pharma’s Board of Directors authorized a new share repurchase program under which Royalty Pharma may repurchase up to $3.0 billion of its Class A ordinary shares. Royalty Pharma intends to repurchase $2.0 billion of its shares in 2025, subject to market conditions. The total value of shares repurchased will depend on the discount to the intrinsic value at which its Class A ordinary shares are trading. This new share repurchase program replaces the unused $465 million of the company’s original $1.0 billion share repurchase program that was announced in March 2023.

    Liquidity Summary

      Three Months Ended
    December 31,    		 Twelve Months Ended
    December 31,
      (unaudited)
    ($ in millions) 2024   2023   2024   2023  
    Portfolio Receipts 742   736   2,801   3,049  
    Payments for operating and professional costs (72)   (54)   (236)   (243)  
    Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) 669   682   2,565   2,806  
    Interest received/(paid), net 8   5   (113)   (98)  
    Portfolio Cash Flow (non-GAAP) 678   687   2,452   2,708  

    Amounts may not add due to rounding.

    • Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) was $669 million in the fourth quarter of 2024. Adjusted EBITDA is calculated as Portfolio Receipts minus payments for operating and professional costs.
    • Portfolio Cash Flow (non-GAAP) was $678 million in the fourth quarter of 2024. Portfolio Cash Flow is calculated as Adjusted EBITDA minus interest paid or received, net. This measure reflects the cash generated by Royalty Pharma’s business that can be redeployed into value-enhancing royalty acquisitions, used to repay debt, returned to shareholders through dividends or share purchases, or utilized for other discretionary investments.

    Refer to Table 4 for Royalty Pharma’s reconciliation of each non-GAAP measure to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, net cash provided by operating activities.

    Capital Deployment was $522 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, consisting primarily of the acquisitions of royalties on Niktimvo and Rytelo. Capital Deployment reflects cash payments during the period for new and previously announced transactions. Capital Deployment was $2.8 billion for full year 2024.

    The table below details Capital Deployment by category:

    Capital Deployment

      Three Months Ended
    December 31,    		 Twelve Months Ended
    December 31,
      (unaudited)
    ($ in millions) 2024   2023   2024   2023  
    Acquisitions of financial royalty assets (496)   (1,002)   (2,506)   (2,116)  
    Development-stage funding payments – upfront and milestone —   —   —   (50)  
    Development-stage funding payments – ongoing (1)   (1)   (2)   (2)  
    Purchases of available for sale debt securities —   —   (150)   —  
    Milestone payments (25)   —   (75)   (12)  
    Investments in equity method investees —   (2)   (11)   (13)  
    Acquisitions of other financial assets —   —   (18)   —  
    Contributions from legacy non-controlling interests – R&D 0   0   1   1  
    Capital Deployment (522)   (1,005)   (2,761)   (2,192)  

    Amounts may not add due to rounding.

    In January 2025, Royalty Pharma announced the sale of the MorphoSys Development Funding Bonds for $511 million in upfront cash (press release). This payment, combined with payments previously received, results in total cash proceeds of $530 million on the $300 million investment that was made in September 2022. The proceeds strengthen Royalty Pharma’s balance sheet and provide added flexibility to pursue its disciplined capital allocation strategy.

    Royalty Transactions

    For full year 2024, Royalty Pharma announced new transactions of up to approximately $2.8 billion. The announced transactions amount reflects the entire amount of capital committed for new transactions during the year, including potential future milestones.

    Recent transactions include:

    • In November 2024, Royalty Pharma acquired a synthetic royalty on Rytelo from Geron Corporation for an upfront payment of $125 million (press release). Rytelo is approved for the treatment of certain adult patients with low- to intermediate-1 risk myelodysplastic syndromes with transfusion-dependent anemia. Following the acquisition, Royalty Pharma is entitled to receive tiered royalties on U.S. net sales on Rytelo.
    • In November 2024, Royalty Pharma acquired a synthetic royalty on Niktimvo from Syndax Pharmaceuticals, Inc. for an upfront payment of $350 million (press release). Niktimvo is approved for the treatment of chronic graft-versus-host disease and will be co-commercialized by Incyte. Following the acquisition, Royalty Pharma is entitled to receive royalties on U.S. net sales on Niktimvo.

    The information in this section should be read together with Royalty Pharma’s reports and documents filed with the SEC at www.sec.gov and the reader is also encouraged to review all other press releases and information available in the Investors section of Royalty Pharma’s website at www.royaltypharma.com.

    Internalization Transaction

    In January 2025, Royalty Pharma agreed to acquire its external manager, RP Management, LLC (the “Manager”) (press release). This transaction to simplify Royalty Pharma’s corporate structure is expected to result in multiple benefits for shareholders. On a financial basis, the acquisition is expected to reduce costs and enhance economic returns on investments. Specifically, the acquisition will generate cash savings of greater than $100 million in 2026, rising to greater than $175 million in 2030 and driving cumulative savings of greater than $1.6 billion over ten years. The acquisition also increases shareholder alignment, enhances corporate governance, ensures management continuity and simplifies Royalty Pharma’s corporate structure.

    The total transaction value of approximately $1.1 billion(7) consists of approximately 24.5 million shares of Royalty Pharma equity that will vest over five to nine years, approximately $100 million in cash(8), and the assumption of $380 million of the Manager’s existing debt.

    The closing of the internalization transaction is subject to shareholders’ approval of the issuance of the share consideration and other customary closing conditions, including required regulatory approvals. The transaction is estimated to close during the second quarter of 2025.

    Key Developments Relating to the Portfolio

    The key developments related to Royalty Pharma’s royalty interests are discussed below based on disclosures from the marketers of the products.

    TEV-‘749 In January 2025, Teva announced that TEV-‘749 (olanzapine LAI) achieved Phase 3 targeted injections without PDSS (post-injection delirium/sedation syndrome), and the full safety presentation is expected in the second quarter of 2025.
    Cystic fibrosis franchise In December 2024, Vertex announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the new triple-combination modulator Alyftrek (vanzacaftor triple) for the treatment of cystic fibrosis in people ages 6 and older with at least one responsive mutation.

    In November 2024, Vertex announced that it had completed regulatory submissions for the vanzacaftor triple in the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Switzerland, and reviews are underway.
    Skytrofa In December 2024, Ascendis announced the U.S. FDA accepted for review its supplemental Biologics License Application (sBLA) in adult growth hormone deficiency for Skytrofa. The FDA set a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) goal date of July 27, 2025.
    aficamten In December 2024, Cytokinetics announced that the FDA accepted its New Drug Application (NDA) for aficamten for the treatment of Obstructive Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. The FDA has assigned the NDA a Prescription Drug User Fee Act date of September 26, 2025. Additionally, the European Medicines Agency validated the Marketing Authorization Application for aficamten, and it will now be reviewed by the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP).
    Trodelvy In November 2024, Gilead announced plans to voluntarily withdraw the U.S. accelerated approval of Trodelvy for use in pre-treated adult patients with locally advanced or metastatic urothelial cancer, following the results of the Phase 3 TROPiCS-04 trial.
    Airsupra In October 2024, AstraZeneca announced that positive high-level results from the BATURA Phase 3b trial showed Airsupra met the primary endpoint, demonstrating a statistically significant and clinically meaningful reduction in the risk of a severe exacerbation when used as an as-needed rescue medication in response to symptoms compared to as-needed albuterol. These positive results triggered a milestone payment from AstraZeneca, of which Royalty Pharma received its pro rata portion of $27 million in January 2025.
    MK-8189 In October 2024, Merck updated its public disclosures to remove MK-8189 from its pipeline chart and Royalty Pharma does not anticipate making a further investment in this program.
    pelabresib In October 2024, Novartis announced that based on its review of 48-week data from the Phase 3 MANIFEST-2 study, longer follow-up time is needed to determine the regulatory path for pelabresib in myelofibrosis. Novartis will continue to follow patients in MANIFEST-2 and evaluate the potential for additional studies to support registration.
    trontinemab In October 2024, Roche presented its latest Phase 1b/2a interim results for trontinemab at the Clinical Trials on Alzheimer’s Disease (CTAD) conference, which demonstrated rapid and robust amyloid plaque depletion after 12 to 28 weeks of treatment and an overall favorable safety profile with very limited amyloid related imaging abnormalities (ARIA-E) observed.


    2025 Financial Outlook

    Royalty Pharma has provided guidance for full-year 2025, excluding new transactions and borrowings announced after the date of this release, as follows:

      Provided February 11, 2025
    Portfolio Receipts $2,900 million to $3,050 million
    (Growth of ~+4% to 9% year/year)
    Payments for operating and professional costs Approximately 10% of Portfolio Receipts(1)
    Interest paid $260 million

    The above Portfolio Receipts guidance represents expected growth of 4% to 9% in 2025. Royalty Pharma’s full-year 2025 guidance reflects a negligible estimated foreign exchange impact to Portfolio Receipts, assuming current foreign exchange rates prevail for the rest of 2025.

    2025 guidance for payments for operating and professional costs and interest paid does not reflect the impact of the internalization transaction announced on January 10, 2025 and will be updated following the closing of the internalization transaction, which is expected to be in the second quarter of 2025.

    Total interest paid is based on the semi-annual interest payment schedule of Royalty Pharma’s existing notes and is anticipated to be approximately $260 million in 2025. Interest paid is anticipated to be approximately $138 million in the first quarter of 2025, which includes the first interest payment on the $1.5 billion notes issued in June 2024. Interest paid in the third quarter of 2025 is anticipated to be $119 million. De minimis amounts are anticipated in the second and fourth quarter of 2025. These projections assume no additional debt financing in 2025, including no drawdown on the revolving credit facility. In 2024, Royalty Pharma collected interest of $46 million on its cash and cash equivalents.

    Royalty Pharma today provides this guidance based on its most up-to-date view of its prospects. This guidance assumes no major unforeseen adverse events or changes in foreign exchange rates and excludes the contributions from transactions announced subsequent to the date of this press release.

    Financial Results Call

    Royalty Pharma will host a conference call and simultaneous webcast to discuss its fourth quarter and full year 2024 results today at 8:30 a.m., Eastern Time. Please visit the “Investors” page of the company’s website at https://www.royaltypharma.com/investors/events to obtain conference call information and to view the live webcast. A replay of the conference call and webcast will be archived on the company’s website for at least 30 days.

    About Royalty Pharma plc

    Founded in 1996, Royalty Pharma is the largest buyer of biopharmaceutical royalties and a leading funder of innovation across the biopharmaceutical industry, collaborating with innovators from academic institutions, research hospitals and non-profits through small and mid-cap biotechnology companies to leading global pharmaceutical companies. Royalty Pharma has assembled a portfolio of royalties which entitles it to payments based directly on the top-line sales of many of the industry’s leading therapies. Royalty Pharma funds innovation in the biopharmaceutical industry both directly and indirectly – directly when it partners with companies to co-fund late-stage clinical trials and new product launches in exchange for future royalties, and indirectly when it acquires existing royalties from the original innovators. Royalty Pharma’s current portfolio includes royalties on more than 35 commercial products, including Vertex’s Trikafta, GSK’s Trelegy, Roche’s Evrysdi, Johnson & Johnson’s Tremfya, Biogen’s Tysabri and Spinraza, AbbVie and Johnson & Johnson’s Imbruvica, Astellas and Pfizer’s Xtandi, Novartis’ Promacta, Pfizer’s Nurtec ODT and Gilead’s Trodelvy, and 14 development-stage product candidates.

    Forward-Looking Statements

    The information set forth herein does not purport to be complete or to contain all of the information you may desire. Statements contained herein are made as of the date of this document unless stated otherwise, and neither the delivery of this document at any time, nor any sale of securities, shall under any circumstances create an implication that the information contained herein is correct as of any time after such date or that information will be updated or revised to reflect information that subsequently becomes available or changes occurring after the date hereof.

    This document contains statements that constitute “forward-looking statements” as that term is defined in the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements that express the company’s opinions, expectations, beliefs, plans, objectives, assumptions or projections regarding future events or future results, in contrast with statements that reflect historical facts. Examples include discussion of Royalty Pharma’s strategies, financing plans, growth opportunities, market growth and plans for capital deployment, plus the benefits of the benefits of the internalization transaction, including expected accretion, enhanced alignment with shareholders, increased investment returns, expectations regarding management continuity, transparency and governance, and the benefits of simplification to its structure. In some cases, you can identify such forward-looking statements by terminology such as “anticipate,” “intend,” “believe,” “estimate,” “plan,” “seek,” “project,” “expect,” “may,” “will,” “would,” “could” or “should,” the negative of these terms or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on management’s current beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to the company. However, these forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of Royalty Pharma’s performance, and you should not place undue reliance on such statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to many risks, uncertainties and other variable circumstances, and other factors. Such risks and uncertainties may cause the statements to be inaccurate and readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such statements. Many of these risks are outside of the company’s control and could cause its actual results to differ materially from those it thought would occur. The forward-looking statements included in this document are made only as of the date hereof. The company does not undertake, and specifically declines, any obligation to update any such statements or to publicly announce the results of any revisions to any such statements to reflect future events or developments, except as required by law.

    Certain information contained in this document relates to or is based on studies, publications, surveys and other data obtained from third-party sources and the company’s own internal estimates and research. While the company believes these third-party sources to be reliable as of the date of this document, it has not independently verified, and makes no representation as to the adequacy, fairness, accuracy or completeness of, any information obtained from third-party sources. In addition, all of the market data included in this document involves a number of assumptions and limitations, and there can be no guarantee as to the accuracy or reliability of such assumptions. Finally, while the company believes its own internal research is reliable, such research has not been verified by any independent source.

    For further information, please reference Royalty Pharma’s reports and documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) by visiting EDGAR on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

    Portfolio Receipts

    Portfolio Receipts is a key performance metric that represents Royalty Pharma’s ability to generate cash from Royalty Pharma’s portfolio investments, the primary source of capital that is deployed to make new portfolio investments. Portfolio Receipts is defined as the sum of Royalty Receipts and Milestones and other contractual receipts. Royalty Receipts includes variable payments based on sales of products, net of contractual payments to the legacy non-controlling interests, that are attributed to Royalty Pharma.

    Milestones and other contractual receipts include sales-based or regulatory milestone payments and other fixed contractual receipts, net of contractual payments to legacy non-controlling interests, that are attributed to Royalty Pharma. Portfolio Receipts does not include proceeds from equity securities or proceeds from purchases and sales of marketable securities, both of which are not central to Royalty Pharma’s fundamental business strategy.

    Portfolio Receipts is calculated as the sum of the following line items from Royalty Pharma’s GAAP statements of cash flows: Cash collections from financial royalty assets, Cash collections from intangible royalty assets, Other royalty cash collections, Proceeds from available for sale debt securities and Distributions from equity method investees less Distributions to legacy non-controlling interests – Portfolio Receipts, which represent contractual distributions of Royalty Receipts, milestones and other contractual receipts to RPSFT and the Legacy Investors Partnerships. Distributions to RPSFT substantially ended in December 2023 when Royalty Pharma acquired the remaining interest in RPCT held by RPSFT.

    Use of Non-GAAP Measures

    Adjusted EBITDA and Portfolio Cash Flow are non-GAAP liquidity measures that exclude the impact of certain items and therefore have not been calculated in accordance with GAAP.

    Management believes that Adjusted EBITDA and Portfolio Cash Flow are important non-GAAP measures used to analyze liquidity because they are key components of certain material covenants contained within Royalty Pharma’s credit agreement. Royalty Pharma cautions readers that amounts presented in accordance with the definitions of Adjusted EBITDA and Portfolio Cash Flow may not be the same as similar measures used by other companies or analysts. These non-GAAP liquidity measures have limitations as analytical tools, and you should not consider them in isolation or as a substitute for the analysis of Royalty Pharma’s results as reported under GAAP.

    The definitions of Adjusted EBITDA and Portfolio Cash Flow used by Royalty Pharma are the same as the definitions in the credit agreement. Noncompliance with the interest coverage ratio, leverage ratio and Portfolio Cash Flow ratio covenants under the credit agreement could result in lenders requiring the company to immediately repay all amounts borrowed. If Royalty Pharma cannot satisfy these covenants, it would be prohibited under the credit agreement from engaging in certain activities, such as incurring additional indebtedness, paying dividends, making certain payments, and acquiring and disposing of assets. Consequently, Adjusted EBITDA and Portfolio Cash Flow are critical to the assessment of Royalty Pharma’s liquidity.

    Adjusted EBITDA and Portfolio Cash Flow are used by management as key liquidity measures in the evaluation of the company’s ability to generate cash from operations. Management uses Adjusted EBITDA and Portfolio Cash Flow when considering available cash, including for decision-making purposes related to funding of acquisitions, debt repayments, dividends and other discretionary investments. Further, these non-GAAP liquidity measures help management, the audit committee and investors evaluate the company’s ability to generate liquidity from operating activities.

    The company has provided reconciliations of these non-GAAP liquidity measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, being net cash provided by operating activities in Table 4.

    Royalty Pharma Investor Relations and Communications

    +1 (212) 883-6772
    ir@royaltypharma.com

     
    Royalty Pharma plc
    Condensed Consolidated Operations (unaudited)
    Table 1
     
      Three Months Ended
    December 31,    		 Twelve Months Ended
    December 31,
    ($ in millions) 2024   2023   2024   2023  
    Income and other revenues        
    Income from financial royalty assets 562   523   2,149   2,198  
    Other royalty income and revenues 32   73   114   157  
    Total income and other revenues 594   596   2,264   2,355  
    Operating expense/(income)        
    Provision for changes in expected cash flows from financial royalty assets 164   (77)   732   561  
    Research and development funding expense 1   1   2   52  
    General and administrative expenses 68   59   237   250  
    Total operating expense/(income), net 232   (17)   971   862  
    Operating income 362   613   1,292   1,492  
    Other (income)/expense        
    Equity in earnings of equity method investees (32)   (0)   (30)   (29)  
    Interest expense 66   47   226   187  
    Other income, net (7)   (152)   (234)   (366)  
    Total other expense/(income), net 27   (105)   (38)   (208)  
    Consolidated net income before tax 334   718   1,331   1,700  
    Income tax expense —   —   —   —  
    Consolidated net income 334   718   1,331   1,700  
    Net income attributable to non-controlling interests 126   223   472   565  
    Net income attributable to Royalty Pharma plc 208   494   859   1,135  

    Amounts may not add due to rounding.

     
    Royalty Pharma plc
    Selected Balance Sheet Data (unaudited)
    Table 2
     
    ($ in millions) As of December 31, 2024 As of December 31, 2023
    Cash and cash equivalents 929 477
    Total current and non-current financial royalty assets, net 15,911 14,827
    Total assets 18,223 16,382
    Current portion of long-term debt 998 —
    Long-term debt, net of current portion 6,615 6,135
    Total liabilities 7,880 6,298
    Total shareholders’ equity 10,342 10,084
     
    Royalty Pharma plc
    Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (unaudited)
    Table 3
     
      Three Months Ended
    December 31,    		 Twelve Months Ended
    December 31,
    ($ in millions) 2024   2023   2024   2023  
    Cash flows from operating activities:        
    Cash collections from financial royalty assets 777   747   2,983   3,201  
    Cash collections from intangible royalty assets 0   0   15   1  
    Other royalty cash collections 30   75   109   159  
    Distributions from equity method investees —   —   13   19  
    Interest received 9   8   46   72  
    Development-stage funding payments – ongoing (1)   (1)   (2)   (2)  
    Development-stage funding payments – upfront and milestone —   —   —   (50)  
    Payments for operating and professional costs (72)   (54)   (236)   (243)  
    Interest paid (1)   (3)   (160)   (169)  
    Net cash provided by operating activities 743   773   2,769   2,988  
    Cash flows from investing activities:        
    Distributions from equity method investees 3   5   24   44  
    Investments in equity method investees —   (2)   (11)   (13)  
    Purchases of equity securities —   —   (63)   —  
    Proceeds from equity securities —   —   99   —  
    Purchases of available for sale debt securities —   —   (150)   —  
    Proceeds from available for sale debt securities 13   1   20   1  
    Proceeds from sales and maturities of marketable securities —   —   —   24  
    Acquisitions of financial royalty assets (496)   (1,002)   (2,506)   (2,116)  
    Acquisitions of other financial assets —   —   (18)   —  
    Milestone payments (25)   —   (75)   (12)  
    Other —   (2)   2   (2)  
    Net cash used in investing activities (506)   (1,000)   (2,678)   (2,073)  
    Cash flows from financing activities:        
    Distributions to legacy non-controlling interests – Portfolio Receipts (81)   (92)   (362)   (377)  
    Distributions to continuing non-controlling interests (31)   (24)   (125)   (120)  
    Dividends to shareholders (94)   (89)   (376)   (358)  
    Repurchases of Class A ordinary shares (53)   (30)   (230)   (305)  
    Contributions from legacy non-controlling interests – R&D 0   0   1   1  
    Contributions from non-controlling interests – other 1   1   4   7  
    Cash acquired in connection with purchase of non-controlling interest —   5   —   5  
    Proceeds from revolving credit facility —   350   —   350  
    Repayment of revolving credit facility —   (350)   —   (350)  
    Repayment of long-term debt —   —   —   (1,000)  
    Proceeds from issuance of long-term debt, net of discount —   —   1,471   —  
    Debt issuance costs and other 0   (2)   (13)   (2)  
    Other 0   —   (9)   —  
    Net cash (used in)/provided by financing activities (258)   (232)   361   (2,149)  
    Net change in cash and cash equivalents (21)   (459)   452   (1,234)  
    Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period 950   936   477   1,711  
    Cash and cash equivalents, end of period 929   477   929   477  

    Amounts may not add due to rounding.

     
    Royalty Pharma plc
    GAAP to Non-GAAP Reconciliation (unaudited)
    Table 4
     
      Three Months Ended
    December 31,    		 Twelve Months Ended
    December 31,
    ($ in millions) 2024   2023   2024   2023  
    Net cash provided by operating activities (GAAP) 743   773   2,769   2,988  
    Adjustments:        
    Proceeds from available for sale debt securities(6) 13   1   20   1  
    Distributions from equity method investees(6) 3   5   24   44  
    Interest (received)/paid, net(6) (8)   (5)   113   98  
    Development-stage funding payments – ongoing 1   1   2   2  
    Development-stage funding payments – upfront and milestone —   —   —   50  
    Distributions to legacy non-controlling interests – Portfolio Receipts(6) (81)   (92)   (362)   (377)  
    Adjusted EBITDA (non-GAAP) 669   682   2,565   2,806  
    Interest received/(paid), net(6) 8   5   (113)   (98)  
    Portfolio Cash Flow (non-GAAP) 678   687   2,452   2,708  

    Amounts may not add due to rounding.

     
    Royalty Pharma plc
    Fourth Quarter and Full Year Portfolio Receipts Highlights (unaudited)
    Table 5
     
      Three Months Ended December 31, Twelve Months Ended December 31,
    ($ in millions) 2024 2023 Change 2024 2023 Change
    Products:            
    Cystic fibrosis franchise 237 207 14% 857 771 11%
    Trelegy 74 60 23% 284 203 40%
    Tysabri 61 68 (11)% 262 279 (6)%
    Imbruvica 46 50 (10)% 191 210 (9)%
    Evrysdi 56 20 182% 174 66 163%
    Xtandi 46 38 20% 169 146 15%
    Promacta 44 44 (1)% 158 161 (2)%
    Tremfya 39 35 11% 140 116 20%
    Cabometyx/Cometriq 20 18 11% 73 66 10%
    Spinraza 15 17 (13)% 45 45 1%
    Trodelvy 11 10 10% 43 33 30%
    Erleada 11 9 25% 39 27 42%
    Orladeyo 11 8 36% 39 29 32%
    Nurtec ODT/Zavzpret 7 5 49% 26 18 39%
    Other products(5) 54 63 (14)% 273 277 (1)%
    Royalty Receipts 729 651 12% 2,771 2,449 13%
    Milestones and other contractual receipts 13 84 (85)% 31 599 (95)%
    Portfolio Receipts 742 736 1% 2,801 3,049 (8)%

    Amounts may not add due to rounding.

    Royalty Pharma plc
    Description of Approved Indications for Select Portfolio Therapies
    Table 6

    Cystic fibrosis franchise Cystic fibrosis
    Trelegy Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma
    Tysabri Relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis
    Evrysdi Spinal muscular atrophy
    Xtandi Prostate cancer
    Imbruvica Hematological malignancies and chronic graft versus host disease
    Promacta Chronic immune thrombocytopenia purpura and aplastic anemia
    Tremfya Plaque psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis and ulcerative colitis
    Cabometyx / Cometriq Kidney, liver and thyroid cancer
    Spinraza Spinal muscular atrophy
    Orladeyo Hereditary angioedema
    Trodelvy Breast and bladder cancer
    Erleada Prostate cancer
    Nurtec ODT/Zavzpret Acute and preventative treatment of migraine


    Notes

    (1)  Portfolio Receipts is a key performance metric that represents Royalty Pharma’s ability to generate cash from Royalty Pharma’s portfolio investments, the primary source of capital that Royalty Pharma can deploy to make new portfolio investments. Portfolio Receipts is defined as the sum of Royalty Receipts and Milestones and other contractual receipts. Royalty Receipts include variable payments based on sales of products, net of contractual payments to the legacy non-controlling interests, that are attributed to Royalty Pharma (“Royalty Receipts”). Milestones and other contractual receipts include sales-based or regulatory milestone payments and other fixed contractual receipts, net of contractual payments to the legacy non-controlling interests, that are attributed to Royalty Pharma. Portfolio Receipts does not include proceeds from equity securities or proceeds from purchases and sales of marketable securities, both of which are not central to Royalty Pharma’s fundamental business strategy.

    Portfolio Receipts is calculated as the sum of the following line items from Royalty Pharma’s GAAP statements of cash flows: Cash collections from financial royalty assets, Cash collections from intangible royalty assets, Other royalty cash collections, Proceeds from available for sale debt securities and Distributions from equity method investees less Distributions to legacy non-controlling interests – Portfolio Receipts, which represent contractual distributions of Royalty Receipts and milestones and other contractual receipts to RPSFT and the Legacy Investors Partnerships. Distributions to RPSFT substantially ended in December 2023 when Royalty Pharma acquired the remaining interest in RPCT held by RPSFT.

    (2) Adjusted EBITDA is defined under the credit agreement as Portfolio Receipts minus payments for operating and professional costs. Operating and professional costs reflect Payments for operating and professional costs from the GAAP statements of cash flows. See GAAP to Non-GAAP reconciliation in Table 4.

    (3) Portfolio Cash Flow is defined under the credit agreement as Adjusted EBITDA minus interest paid or received, net. See GAAP to Non-GAAP reconciliation in Table 4. Portfolio Cash Flow reflects the cash generated by Royalty Pharma’s business that can be redeployed into value-enhancing royalty acquisitions, used to repay debt, returned to shareholders through dividends or share purchases or utilized for other discretionary investments.

    (4) Capital Deployment is calculated as the summation of the following line items from Royalty Pharma’s GAAP statements of cash flows: Investments in equity method investees, Purchases of available for sale debt securities, Acquisitions of financial royalty assets, Acquisitions of other financial assets, Milestone payments, Development-stage funding payments – ongoing, Development-stage funding payments – upfront and milestone less Contributions from legacy non-controlling interests – R&D.

    (5) Other products primarily include Royalty Receipts on the following products: Cimzia, Crysvita, Emgality, Entyvio, Farxiga/Onglyza, IDHIFA, Lexiscan, Nesina, Prevymis, Soliqua and distributions from the Legacy SLP Interest, which is presented as Distributions from equity method investees on the GAAP statements of cash flows.

    (6) The table below shows the line item for each adjustment and the direct location for such line item on the GAAP statements of cash flows.

    Reconciling Adjustment Statements of Cash Flows Classification
    Interest received/paid, net Operating activities (Interest paid less Interest received)
    Distributions from equity method investees Investing activities
    Proceeds from available for sale debt securities Investing activities
    Distributions to legacy non-controlling interests – Portfolio Receipts Financing activities

    (7) The total transaction value of approximately $1.1 billion is based on the closing price of Royalty Pharma plc common stock of $26.20 on January 8, 2025.

    (8) Consists of $200 million in cash less the amount of the management fees paid to the Manager from January 1, 2025 through the closing of the transaction.

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland files indictment on charges of insider dealing involving millions of francs

    Source: Switzerland – Department of Foreign Affairs in English

    The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) has indicted a Swiss citizen in the Federal Criminal Court on charges of insider dealing in transactions worth millions of francs. The indictment alleges that in five cases in the period from 2018 to 2020, the accused exploited confidential and price sensitive information about ongoing or planned takeovers. By doing so, he is believed to have made an unlawful profit of around CHF 10.6 million. He is alleged to have obtained the confidential information from an acquaintance of many years standing who worked for an investment bank.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: International Day of Women and Girls in Science: A seat at the table for women scientists

    Source: Switzerland – Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research

    Research thrives on diversity of thought, new perspectives, talent and creativity. By involving and supporting female researchers, today’s greatest challenges can be addressed and solved. To mark the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, four Empa researchers whose contributions have shaped science at the national and international level share their stories and motivations.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: As Trump abandons the old world order, NZ must find its place in a new ‘Pax Autocratica’

    Source: The Conversation – Global Perspectives – By Chris Ogden, Associate Professor in Global Studies, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau

    Donald Trump is moving rapidly to change the contours of contemporary international affairs, with the old US-dominated world order breaking down into a multipolar one with many centres of power.

    The shift already includes the US leaving the World Health Organization and the Paris Climate Accords, questioning the value of the United Nations, and radical cuts to the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

    Such a new geopolitical age also involves an assertion of raw power, with Trump using the threat of tariffs to assert global authority and negotiating positions.

    While the US is not significantly less powerful, this new era may see it wield that power in more openly self-interested and isolationist ways. As new US Secretary of State Marco Rubio put it in January, “the post-war global order is not just obsolete – it is now a weapon being used against us”.

    With global democracy in retreat, the emerging international order looks to be moving in an authoritarian direction. As it does, the position of New Zealand’s vibrant democracy will come under mounting pressure.

    But world orders have come and gone for millennia, reflecting the ebb and flow of global economic, political and military power. Looking back to previous eras, and how countries and cultures responded to shifting geopolitical realities, can help us understand what is happening more clearly.

    An evolving world order

    Previous orders have often focused on specific centres – or “poles” – of power. These include the Concert of Europe from 1814 to 1914, the bipolar world of the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union, and the unipolar world of American dominance after the end of the Cold War and since the September 11 attacks in 2001.

    Periods of single-power dominance (or hegemony) are referred to as a “pax”, from the Latin for “peace”. We have seen the Pax Romana of the Roman Empire (27 BCE to 180 AD), multiple Pax Sinicas around China (most recently the Qing Dynasty 1644 to 1912), Pax Mongolica (the Mongol Empire from 1271 to 1368) and Pax Britannica (the British Empire from 1815 to 1924).

    It is the Pax Americana of the US, from 1945 to the present, that Trump seems bent on dismantling. We now live in an international order that is visibly in flux. With autocracy on the rise and the US at its vanguard, a “Pax Autocratica” is emerging.

    This is accentuated by the rapid rise of Asia as the main sphere of economic and military growth, particularly China and India. The world’s two most populous countries had the world’s largest and third largest economies respectively in 2023, and the second and fourth highest levels of military spending.

    The simultaneous rise of multiple power centres was already challenging the Pax Americana. Now, a new international order appears to be a certainty, with Trump openly adapting to multipolarity. Several major powers now compete for global influence, rather than any one country dominating.

    China’s preference for a multipolar international order is shared by India and Russia. Without one dominant entity, it will be the political and social basis of this order, as determined by its major actors, that matters most – not who leads it.

    Pax Democratica

    The current (now waning) international order has been underpinned by specific social, political and economic values stemming from the national identity and historical experience of the US.

    According to US political expert G. John Ikenberry, former president Woodrow Wilson’s agenda for peace after the first world war sought to “reflect distinctive American ideas and ideals”.

    Woodrow imagined an order based on collective security and shared sovereignty, liberal principles of democracy and universal human rights, free trade and international law.

    As its dominance and military strength increased in the 20th century, the US also provided security to other countries. Such power enabled Washington to create open global trade markets, as well as build core global institutions like the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, World Trade Organization, United Nations and NATO.

    For Ikenberry, this Pax Americana (we might call it a Pax Democratica) rested on consent to the US’s “provision of security, wealth creation, and social advancement”. This was aided by the its more than 800 military bases in over 80 countries.

    The democratic deficit

    Trump undercuts the central tenets of this liberal world order and accelerates a slide towards authoritarianism. Like Russia, India and China, the US is also actively constraining human rights, attacking minorities and weakening its electoral system.

    This democratic retreat leaves a country such as New Zealand in a global minority. If Trump targets the region or country with economic tariffs, that precariousness might increase.

    On the other hand, previous world orders have not been truly hegemonic. Pax Britannica did not encompass the entire world. Nor did Pax Americana, which didn’t include China, India, the former Soviet bloc, much of the Islamic world and many developing countries.

    This suggests pockets of democracy can survive within a Pax Autocratica, especially in a multipolar world which is more tolerant of political independence.

    The Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2023 Democracy Index ranked New Zealand, the Nordic countries, Switzerland, Iceland and Ireland highest because their citizens

    choose their political leaders in free and fair elections, enjoy civil liberties, prefer democracy over other political systems, can and do participate in politics, and have a functioning government that acts on their behalf.

    It is these countries that can be at the vanguard of democratic resilience.

    Chris Ogden is a Senior Research Fellow with The Foreign Policy Centre, London.

    – ref. As Trump abandons the old world order, NZ must find its place in a new ‘Pax Autocratica’ – https://theconversation.com/as-trump-abandons-the-old-world-order-nz-must-find-its-place-in-a-new-pax-autocratica-249358

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Submissions: Economy – Global Barometers rise in February after falling in January – KOF

    Source: KOF Economic Institute

    The Global Barometers increase slightly in February, partially recovering the losses of the previous month. The results indicate a possible consolidation of these levels for the indicators, after an upward tendency was indicated at the end of 2024.

    In February, the Coincident Global Barometer increases by 0.9 points to 95.2 points, while the Leading Barometer gains 0.8 points to reach 103.3 points. The rise in the Coincident Barometer is driven by the indicator for the Asia, Pacific & Africa region, and in the Leading Barometer by the indicators for the Asia, Pacific & Africa region and Europe. The Western Hemisphere remains at the highest level among the regions for both temporal horizons.

    “The most significant changes compared to last month are the increases of 0.7 and 0.8 points in the coincident and leading indicators for the Asia-Pacific and African regions, respectively. While the outlook for Europe has also improved (by 0.7 points), that for the Western Hemisphere has declined by the same amount. Nevertheless, only Asia-Pacific and Africa are worse off than a year ago. It will be interesting to see whether regional differences widen in the coming months in the current political environment”, evaluates Jan-Egbert Sturm, Director of KOF Swiss Economic Institute.

    Coincident Barometer – regions and sectors

    The 0.9-point increase in the Coincident Barometer in February results from the positive contribution of 0.7 points from the indicator for the Asia, Pacific & Africa region and 0.1 points from the indicators for Europe and the Western Hemisphere. The latter region maintains an increasing tendency for the fourth consecutive month to record its highest level since March 2022 (103.0 points). With this result, the Western Hemisphere is now more than 10 points above the indicator for the Asia, Pacific & Africa region.

    Among the Coincident sector indicators, only Services is moving in the opposite direction, while Construction, Trade, and Industry drive this month’s increase, while the Economy (aggregated business and consumer evaluations) remains virtually stable.

    Leading Barometer – regions and sectors

    The Leading Global Barometer leads the world economic growth rate cycle by three to six months on average. In February, the Asia, Pacific & Africa region and Europe contribute positively to the aggregate result with 0.8 and 0.7 points, respectively. In contrast, the indicator for the Western Hemisphere contributes negatively with -0.7 points, interrupting a sequence of three consecutive gains. All the regional indicators are now above 100 points, suggesting a moderately positive outlook for world economic growth in the coming months.

    Among the Leading sector indicators, only the indicator for Economy loses ground this month, which is its second consecutive decrease. The stronger growth in the Construction sector stands out in the first two months of 2025, with the indicator recording a high level of optimism for the coming months.

    MIL OSI – Submitted News –

  • MIL-Evening Report: As Trump abandons the old world order, NZ must find its place in a new ‘Pax Autocratica’

    Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chris Ogden, Associate Professor in Global Studies, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau

    Donald Trump is moving rapidly to change the contours of contemporary international affairs, with the old US-dominated world order breaking down into a multipolar one with many centres of power.

    The shift already includes the US leaving the World Health Organization and the Paris Climate Accords, questioning the value of the United Nations, and radical cuts to the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

    Such a new geopolitical age also involves an assertion of raw power, with Trump using the threat of tariffs to assert global authority and negotiating positions.

    While the US is not significantly less powerful, this new era may see it wield that power in more openly self-interested and isolationist ways. As new US Secretary of State Marco Rubio put it in January, “the post-war global order is not just obsolete – it is now a weapon being used against us”.

    With global democracy in retreat, the emerging international order looks to be moving in an authoritarian direction. As it does, the position of New Zealand’s vibrant democracy will come under mounting pressure.

    But world orders have come and gone for millennia, reflecting the ebb and flow of global economic, political and military power. Looking back to previous eras, and how countries and cultures responded to shifting geopolitical realities, can help us understand what is happening more clearly.

    An evolving world order

    Previous orders have often focused on specific centres – or “poles” – of power. These include the Concert of Europe from 1814 to 1914, the bipolar world of the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union, and the unipolar world of American dominance after the end of the Cold War and since the September 11 attacks in 2001.

    Periods of single-power dominance (or hegemony) are referred to as a “pax”, from the Latin for “peace”. We have seen the Pax Romana of the Roman Empire (27 BCE to 180 AD), multiple Pax Sinicas around China (most recently the Qing Dynasty 1644 to 1912), Pax Mongolica (the Mongol Empire from 1271 to 1368) and Pax Britannica (the British Empire from 1815 to 1924).

    It is the Pax Americana of the US, from 1945 to the present, that Trump seems bent on dismantling. We now live in an international order that is visibly in flux. With autocracy on the rise and the US at is vanguard, a “Pax Autocratica” is emerging.

    This is accentuated by the rapid rise of Asia as the main sphere of economic and military growth, particularly China and India. The world’s two most populous countries had the world’s largest and third largest economies respectively in 2023, and the second and fourth highest levels of military spending.

    The simultaneous rise of multiple power centres was already challenging the Pax Americana. Now, a new international order appears to be a certainty, with Trump openly adapting to multipolarity. Several major powers now compete for global influence, rather than any one country dominating.

    China’s preference for a multipolar international order is shared by India and Russia. Without one dominant entity, it will be the political and social basis of this order, as determined by its major actors, that matters most – not who leads it.

    Pax Democratica

    The current (now waning) international order has been underpinned by specific social, political and economic values stemming from the national identity and historical experience of the US.

    According to US political expert G. John Ikenberry, former president Woodrow Wilson’s agenda for peace after the first world war sought to “reflect distinctive American ideas and ideals”.

    Woodrow imagined an order based on collective security and shared sovereignty, liberal principles of democracy and universal human rights, free trade and international law.

    As its dominance and military strength increased in the 20th century, the US also provided security to other countries. Such power enabled Washington to create open global trade markets, as well as build core global institutions like the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, World Trade Organization, United Nations and NATO.

    For Ikenberry, this Pax Americana (we might call it a Pax Democratica) rested on consent to the US’s “provision of security, wealth creation, and social advancement”. This was aided by the its more than 800 military bases in over 80 countries.

    The democratic deficit

    Trump undercuts the central tenets of this liberal world order and accelerates a slide towards authoritarianism. Like Russia, India and China, the US is also actively constraining human rights, attacking minorities and weakening its electoral system.

    This democratic retreat leaves a country such as New Zealand in a global minority. If Trump targets the region or country with economic tariffs, that precariousness might increase.

    On the other hand, previous world orders have not been truly hegemonic. Pax Britannica did not encompass the entire world. Nor did Pax Americana, which didn’t include China, India, the former Soviet bloc, much of the Islamic world and many developing countries.

    This suggests pockets of democracy can survive within a Pax Autocratica, especially in a multipolar world which is more tolerant of political independence.

    The Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2023 Democracy Index ranked New Zealand, the Nordic countries, Switzerland, Iceland and Ireland highest because their citizens

    choose their political leaders in free and fair elections, enjoy civil liberties, prefer democracy over other political systems, can and do participate in politics, and have a functioning government that acts on their behalf.

    It is these countries that can be at the vanguard of democratic resilience.

    Chris Ogden is a Senior Research Fellow with The Foreign Policy Centre, London.

    – ref. As Trump abandons the old world order, NZ must find its place in a new ‘Pax Autocratica’ – https://theconversation.com/as-trump-abandons-the-old-world-order-nz-must-find-its-place-in-a-new-pax-autocratica-249358

    MIL OSI Analysis – EveningReport.nz –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: Geopolitical, Environmental, Socioeconomic Crises Threatening Development Gains, Under-Secretary-General Tells Commission for Social Development

    Source: United Nations General Assembly and Security Council

    Global solidarity is more essential than ever to address poverty, hunger, inequality and other pressing challenges facing humanity, speakers emphasized today at the opening of the 2025 annual session of the Commission for Social Development, calling for increased investment in social protection to meet these urgent needs.

    “We must step up our efforts and confront these challenges and development gaps, with determination and a collective resolve,” said Li Junhua, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs.  He noted that geopolitical, environmental and socioeconomic crises — compounded by megatrends like digital transformation and aging populations — threaten hard-won development gains, jeopardizing solidarity, social inclusion and social cohesion.

    “We must reverse these trends,” urged Philémon Yang (Cameroon), President of the General Assembly, adding:  “When every $1 invested in social protection yields $3 of return, measured in improved health and productivity — we literally have everything to gain.  It offers our best shot to ensure we leave no one behind”.

    The Commission — established in 1946 by the Economic and Social Council as one of its functional organs — advises the United Nations on social development issues.  Its sixty-third session will run through 14 February under the priority theme:  “Strengthening solidarity, social inclusion and social cohesion to accelerate the delivery of the commitments of the Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development and Programme of Action of the World Summit for Social Development as well as the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development”.

    In his introductory remarks, Bob Rae (Canada), President of the Economic and Social Council, stressed the importance of leaving no one behind and expressed deep concern about a high level of unemployment among young people:  “If young people can’t get their foot on the ladder, it creates a huge range of social problems.”  Developing an international legal instrument on the rights of older people could strengthen efforts to shift perceptions about old people and ageism and help understand what more can be done to allow them to become and remain active participants in their societies.  Moreover, he stressed the need to address the challenges faced by people with disabilities, which “we have not made anywhere near the progress that we need to make”.

    Liana Almony, Chair of the NGO (non-governmental organization) Committee for Social Development, demanded modifying certain sociocultural patterns and norms to eliminate stigma, prejudices and stereotypes.  “Vulnerable and marginalized individuals face social injustice, discrimination and exclusion in many, if not all, aspects of their everyday lives,” she said, adding:  “Legal recognition and identity play a critical role to ensure the global community upholds its promise of leaving no one behind.”

    Judy Kipkenda, Co-Chair of the UN Global Indigenous Youth Caucus, speaking on behalf of global youth constituents, put forward several recommendations to the Commission, including empowering youth-led organizations and providing funding, technical support, and platforms for youth-led initiatives that address social and economic challenges.  “By investing in youth, promoting equity and fostering social harmony, we can create a more just, equitable and sustainable future for all,” she said.

    “The year 2025 is a crucial year,” said Guy Rider, Under-Secretary-General for Policy in the Executive Office of the Secretary-General, noting that the second World Summit for Social Development [to be held in Doha in November 2025] must lay the foundation in fulfilling the commitments of the Copenhagen Declaration and accelerating the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.  “With only five years remaining until our SDG [Sustainable Development Goal] deadline, we simply must secure progress in the social dimension of sustainable development,” he said, adding:  “We must listen more attentively to people’s voices and ensure that they can shape their own futures.”

    Commission Chair Krzysztof Maria Szczerski (Poland) emphasized that the expected outcome of this session is actionable policy recommendations to support Member States and the Economic and Social Council in implementing the outcomes of the 2023 SDG Summit and the 2024 Summit of the Future, thereby accelerating the implementation of 2030 Agenda and preparing for the second World Summit for Social Development.

    The Commission also held a high-level panel discussion to take stock of the first World Summit in 1995 and the upcoming second conference.

    In his keynote speech, Danilo Türk, President of Club de Madrid, recalled that as a former President of Slovenia, he was personally involved in the preparation for the first Copenhagen Summit 30 years ago.  He pointed out that in the current global political climate, social development and social issues are often neglected or seen as not among the main priorities.  “That’s a big problem, a problem that affects the United Nations as an organization, as a community of nations,” he said.  So, the second Summit in Doha should, most importantly, reaffirm the existence of the UN social development mandate.

    He also highlighted the need to recognize that social challenges are increasingly multidimensional, requiring integrated, synergetic approaches to policymaking.  It is also essential to develop a practical methodology to systemically assess both policy proposals and the obstacles to their implementation, ensuring that ambitious goals are not set without clear mechanisms for action. He also called for creating a dedicated institutional space for UN agencies with strong social mandates to collaborate strategically, enhancing the Economic and Social Council’s role in fostering integrated solutions.  “The 1995 Copenhagen Summit was known as the ‘People’s Summit’, and we must reignite that spirit today,” he concluded.

    Valérie Berset Bircher, Deputy Head of the International Labour Affairs Division of the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, said that advances have been made since Copenhagen.  “Extreme poverty has declined, life expectancy has increased, more children are in school and the world has witnessed economic growth,” she said.  The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has slowed progress.  “We need to have policies, measures and action that ensure that we are truly leaving no one behind,” she added.  Wealth inequality in the last several years has widened, leaving many unable to benefit from economic growth.  Women, young people and informal workers often lack access to stable jobs, fair wages and social protection.  As it prepares for the upcoming Summit in Doha, Switzerland will focus on policies that strengthen labour institutions and individual capacity to take advantage of the opportunities offered by today’s changing world, with a particular emphasis on vulnerable groups.

    Mario Nava, Director-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion of the European Commission, outlined efforts undertaken by the bloc.  Social rights are “at the centre of our action” with three headline targets that deal with employment, skill development and poverty eradication.  On the latter, the bloc will propose its first anti-poverty strategy in 2026 addressing the root causes of the scourge.  It will strengthen its child guarantee supported by the European Social Fund.  A new pact for European social dialogue has been agreed and will be signed at the beginning of March, he noted.  Looking forward, the views of social partners and civil society must be duly considered at the second Summit, where world leaders must renew the social contract, rebuild trust and embrace a comprehensive vision of human rights. International labour standards remain the basis for social development, he added.

    Anousheh Karvar, French Government representative to the International Labor Organization (ILO) and to the G-7 and G-20 for labour, employment and social protection, said that it is time to bring about social justice to as many people as possible.  There are many challenges that remain unresolved.  “As we speak, more than half of the world population does not have access to any social protections,” she stressed.  For 30 years, there has been a “certain fatigue”, she went on to say, urging the need to “breathe new life into the social agenda”.  The November 2025 Summit in Doha must not limit itself to “stock taking or goal setting”.  It must also call upon the world to come to an agreement on how to achieve development goals.  “We must fully implement the standards and norms set by the International Labour Organization (ILO) for more than 100 years,” she urged.

    Eleni Nikolaidou, Expert Minister Counsellor and Deputy Director General of Hellenic Aid at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece, said that the second Summit must advocate for sustained, long-term investment in social protection and employment programmes, strengthening social protection systems.  The Summit must also ensure equitable access to quality education and universal access to healthcare.  It must promote policies that support active aging by ensuring the inclusion of older persons in social, economic and cultural life, and leverage technology and digital transformation.  The Summit must also strengthen the rights of persons with disabilities by implementing comprehensive policies that promote accessibility, social inclusion and equal opportunities.  “Finally, we need a clear road map for action beyond 2025 — the Summit should not only review past commitments but set out specific, time-bound goals for implementation, with monitoring mechanisms to track progress and accountability,” she said.

    Fabio Veras, Senior Researcher at the Institute for Applied Economic Research, and Head of the International Policy Center for Inclusive Development, said that the concentration of wealth in the hands of a few continues to hinder social mobility.  Climate change, armed conflicts and economic crises amplify existing vulnerabilities, undermining progress and hindering the achievements of the SDGs.  “The lack of adequate social coverage, particularly in low-income countries, further compromises progress on the SDGs,” he said.  “Billions of people remain unprotected against life’s inherent risks perpetuating cycles of poverty and vulnerability,” he went on to say.  Further, he urged the need for a fundamental review of the international financial system to ensure that developing countries have access to affordable, long-term financing.  “Expanding universal social protection is necessary for reducing poverty, eradicating hunger and reducing inequality,” he added.

    Charles Katoanga, Director of the Division for Inclusive Social Development at the UN’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs, introduced the following four reports of the Secretary-General:  “Strengthening social cohesion through social inclusion” (document E/CN.5/2025/3); Social dimensions of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (document E/CN.5/2025/2); Policies and programmes involving youth (document E/CN.5/2025/4); and Modalities for the fifth review and appraisal of the implementation of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing, 2002 (document E/CN.5/2025/5).  He also introduced a note of the Secretary-General on “Social resilience and social development” (document E/CN.5/2025/7).

    In other business, the Commission elected, by acclamation, Joslyne Kwishaka (Burundi), AlMaha Mubarak Al-Thani (Qatar) and Oliver Gruenbacher (Austria) as Vice-Chairs, and designated Vice-Chair Paola Andrea Morris Garrido (Guatemala) to serve as Rapporteur.  The Commission also adopted the provisional agenda (document E/CN.5/2025/1).

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: President Karin Keller-Sutter welcomes Holocaust survivors

    Source: Switzerland – Department of Foreign Affairs in English

    On 10 February 2025, some 80 years after the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration and extermination camp, President Karin Keller-Sutter welcomed around 60 survivors of the Holocaust and Nazi oppression who made Switzerland their new home to a lunch at the Bernerhof in Bern. The liberation of Auschwitz symbolises the liberation of all the other concentration camps.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Answer to a written question – Controversial dental tourism to non-EU countries – E-002389/2024(ASW)

    Source: European Parliament

    The Commission recognises that many EU citizens seek medical and dental treatments abroad, driven by cost differences or limited public coverage of costs in their home countries.

    To monitor this trend, the Commission collects annual data on patient mobility within EU/ European Economic Area (EEA) countries.

    It is important to note that data from non-EU countries are not included in these reports. The data are broadly categorised into planned and unplanned treatments; however, they do not provide specific disaggregation for dental treatments. For further details, the last available report is accessible online[1].

    Cross-border healthcare within the EU is governed by Directive 2011/24/EU[2] and the Social Security Coordination Regulations[3]. These legislative frameworks address key aspects such as treatment, reimbursement, patient safety, and liability issues.

    However, they do not apply to healthcare services outside the EU, EEA, and Switzerland, except for the United Kingdom, where social security provisions similar to the regulations apply thanks to the Withdrawal Agreement and the Trade and Cooperation Agreement.

    The Commission has no legal framework for healthcare services accessed outside the EU or EEA countries, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

    Citizens are strongly advised to consult their respective National Contact Points (NCPs) designated at the national level in accordance with Directive 2011/24/EU[4].

    The NCPs can provide information to the patients about their rights to cross-border healthcare, including conditions for reimbursement and procedural requirements, such as the authorisation process for planned treatments and applicable tariffs, among others.

    • [1] https://health.ec.europa.eu/latest-updates/data-cross-border-patient-healthcare-following-directive-201124eu-reference-year-2022-2024-04-19_en
    • [2] http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2011/24/oj
    • [3] https://employment-social-affairs.ec.europa.eu/policies-and-activities/moving-working-europe/eu-social-security-coordination/frequently-asked-questions/faq-social-security-regulations_en
    • [4] http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2011/24/oj

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: India and EFTA Strengthen Economic Ties with the Inauguration of the India-EFTA Desk

    Source: Government of India

    India and EFTA Strengthen Economic Ties with the Inauguration of the India-EFTA Desk

    India-EFTA Desk will function as a single-window mechanism to provide support to EFTA businesses looking to invest, expand, or establish operations in India

    Business Roundtable Witnessed Participation from Over 100 Companies from India and EFTA Nations

    Posted On: 10 FEB 2025 6:27PM by PIB Delhi

    India and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) – comprising Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein – have taken a significant step towards deeper economic collaboration with the inauguration of the India-EFTA Desk. This initiative follows the recently concluded India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA), which positions EFTA as the first European bloc to formalize a trade pact with India. Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, Shri Piyush Goyal hailed TEPA as a landmark agreement, emphasizing India’s growing role in global trade. “This desk will serve as the bridge between businesses on both sides, ensuring transparency, trust, and ease of doing business,” he stated. He underscored India’s ambition to surpass $100 billion in EFTA investments, highlighting the country’s commitment to fostering equitable and mutually beneficial trade relationships.

    The India-EFTA Desk will provide structured support to EFTA businesses looking to invest, expand, or establish operations in India. High-ranking dignitaries from all four EFTA nations attended the launch, reaffirming their commitment to strengthening economic ties.

    Switzerland’s State Secretary for Economic Affairs, Ms. Helene Budliger Artieda, described TEPA as a “new chapter for investment promotion and cooperation,” citing over CHF 10 billion in Swiss FDI that has created 146,000+ jobs in India, particularly in manufacturing. She projected a surge in investments across precision industries, chemicals, food processing, and pharmaceuticals, suggesting that an Invest India office in Switzerland could further drive investment flows.

    Norway’s State Secretary of Trade and Industry, Mr. Tomas Norvoll, likened TEPA to an airport, with the EFTA Desk serving as the landing strip for businesses. He noted that Norwegian companies in India have doubled in the last decade, with sovereign wealth fund assets reaching $31.4 billion.

    Iceland’s Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Martin Eyjolfsson, called TEPA “the most significant trade agreement EFTA has signed in decades,” reinforcing India’s role as a key economic partner for Europe. He highlighted growing cooperation in renewable energy, seafood, and pharmaceuticals, positioning TEPA as a stabilizing force amid global economic uncertainty.

    Liechtenstein’s Minister of External Affairs, Education, and Sport, Ms. Dominique Hasler, emphasized the Desk’s role in facilitating high-value manufacturing and innovation-driven industries. She pointed to Hilti’s success in India and expressed optimism that TEPA would encourage more Liechtenstein-based firms to expand.

    The India-EFTA Desk will drive investment in renewable energy, life sciences, engineering, and digital transformation. Secretary, DPIIT, Shri Amardeep Singh Bhatia, noted that TEPA will spur joint ventures, SME collaborations, and technology partnerships, with the Desk streamlining regulatory navigation for EFTA businesses.

    Union Minister of State, Shri Jitin Prasada, highlighted EFTA’s strategic importance to India’s development goals, citing Norway’s expertise in green shipping, Switzerland’s advancements in rail networks, Iceland’s leadership in geothermal energy, and Liechtenstein’s high-value manufacturing. He also pointed to research collaborations between IITs and the Arctic University of Norway, demonstrating TEPA’s broader scope beyond trade.

    Following the Desk’s inauguration, a high-level Business Roundtable chaired by Shri Piyush Goyal convened to explore opportunities and address trade challenges. Discussions identified key sectors, including seafood & maritime, energy, financial services, pharmaceuticals, engineering, and food processing.

    Looking ahead, the India-EFTA Desk will serve as the primary channel for fostering continuous business-government dialogue. The Indian government has pledged to work closely with EFTA partners to unlock TEPA’s full potential. Concluding the discussions, Shri Piyush Goyal called TEPA a “model agreement” and reaffirmed India’s readiness to build a robust future with EFTA, stating: “India is ready when you are. Let’s build this future together.”

    With the official inauguration of the EFTA Desk, India and EFTA have entered a new era of economic cooperation, ensuring that businesses from both regions thrive in an era of sustainable and innovation-driven growth.

    ***

    Abhishek Dayal/Abhijith Narayanan/Asmitabha Manna

    (Release ID: 2101431) Visitor Counter : 65

    MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: President Karin Keller-Sutter and DDPS head Viola Amherd to take part in the Munich Security Conference

    Source: Switzerland – Federal Administration in English

    President Karin Keller-Sutter, Head of the Federal Department of Finance (FDF), and Federal Councillor Viola Amherd, Head of the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS), will be attending the 61st Munich Security Conference, which is taking place at the end of the week. The conference, which will be opened on Friday, 14 February by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, will focus on global security challenges such as democratic resilience.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York Collected over $400 Million in Asset Forfeiture Actions in FY 2024

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    EDNY Ranked No. 1 in Asset Forfeiture Among All U.S. Attorney’s Offices in the Nation

    United States Attorney John J. Durham announced today that the Eastern District of New York (EDNY) collected over $400 million in asset forfeiture actions in Fiscal Year (FY) 2024, ranking the EDNY first among all 93 districts in the country.  Forfeiture recoveries are generally derived from warrants and forfeiture orders against illegal proceeds generated by, among other things, transnational criminal organizations and cartels; financial frauds; bribery and political corruption; cybercriminals; and those who violate the Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctions (OFAC).  

    “The forfeiture of criminal assets is an important tool used by law enforcement to deter crime and punish wrongdoers by depriving them of their ill-gotten gains,” stated United States Attorney Durham.  “To the extent possible, forfeited funds are used to compensate victims of crime.  That my Office collected the largest dollar amount of asset forfeiture of all U.S. Attorney’s Offices is a testament to the hard work and exceptional dedication of our prosecutors and professional staff in carrying out their mission to do justice, compensate victims, and hold defendants accountable for their crimes.”

    In certain circumstances, forfeited assets deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund can be used to compensate victims of crimes, and for a variety of law enforcement purposes.  In addition, the U.S. Attorney’s Offices, along with the Department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the U.S. and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims.  The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss.  While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the Department’s Crime Victims Fund, which distributes the funds collected to federal and state victim compensation and victim assistance programs. 

    In addition to the asset forfeiture recoveries, EDNY collected a total of $333,368,879.70 in judgments and other debts on behalf of victims and the government in FY 2024 in criminal and civil actions filed in the district and in cases in which the Office worked with other U.S. Attorney’s Offices and components of the Department of Justice.  Of this amount, $303,583,835.60 was collected in criminal cases and $29,785,044.11 in civil cases.

    FY 2024 Forfeiture Highlights

    In March 2024, Gunvor S.A. (Gunvor), a part of the Gunvor Group, one of the largest commodities trading firms in the world, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.  The charge arose out of a scheme to bribe officials of the Ecuadorian Ministry of Hydrocarbons and Petroecuador, the Ecuadorian state-owned oil company, in order to obtain contracts to purchase oil products.  In exchange for these bribe payments, high-level Ecuadorian officials helped Gunvor win contracts to provide a series of oil-backed loans to Petroecuador.  Following the plea, United States District Judge Eric N. Vitaliano sentenced Gunvor to pay a criminal monetary penalty of more than $374 million and to forfeit more than $287 million in ill-gotten gains.

    In October 2023, as previously ordered by United States District Judge Pamela K. Chen, $100,189,754.61 was forfeited from a Swiss bank account held by Datisa S.A.  As proven at two separate trials, Datisa was a corrupt corporate entity that paid and promised to pay millions of dollars in bribes to top soccer officials to secure the media and marketing rights to the 2016 Copa America Centenario, a soccer tournament played in stadiums throughout the United States.  This forfeiture is part of the larger investigation of the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), which exposed corruption throughout world soccer and has resulted in over 30 felony convictions and guilty pleas, and the recovery of over $200 million in forfeiture funds.  

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Italian Government Authority Censures Eyewear Giant Luxottica for Failing to Uphold Fair Union Organizing Standards in U.S. Operations

    Source: Communications Workers of America

    A report by the OECD’s Italian National Contact Point for Responsible Business Conduct (NCP), has exposed global eyewear giant Luxottica for violating workers’ rights during union organizing efforts by the Communications Workers of America at the company’s Atlanta, Georgia logistics center in 2021. Despite publicly embracing its obligations under the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, Luxottica failed to rectify these violations and undermined collaborative efforts to address them under the good offices of the NCP’s conciliation mechanism.

    The report concludes a multi-year process initiated by a formal complaint from IUE-CWA, AFL-CIO, IndustriALL, and UNI labor unions regarding Luxottica’s egregious anti-union tactics and failure to uphold internationally recognized labor standards at its U.S. facilities.

    In its Final Statement on the case, published in late December 2024, the Italian authority found that Luxottica rejected the NCP conciliator’s recommendations on fair union organizing by workers in the United States. The Final Statement confirmed the conciliator’s conclusion that the breakdown of the conciliation process was caused by Luxottica’s refusal to recognize the validity of the Guidelines, and the company’s insistence on U.S. law as the only relevant standard.

    Key Findings from the Italian NCP’s Report

    1. International labor standards, and not domestic law, govern any OECD Guidelines proceeding.

    2. Luxottica failed to engage constructively in the conciliation process, in contrast to the union’s efforts.

    3. As per the conciliator’s instructions, Luxottica should have remained neutral regarding union organizing efforts by its workers.

    IUE-CWA President Carl Kennebrew issued the following statement on the Italian NCP’s findings in the case:

    “Luxottica has deliberately violated OECD Guidelines for Responsible Business by interfering with its employees’ freedom of association and collective bargaining rights. Although Luxottica publicly claims adherence to these guidelines, its actions tell a different story, as the company undermined workers’ attempts to organize at its Atlanta facility.”

    “Luxottica global management has made a fundamental mistake by following the advice of its anti-union American lawyers instead of the conciliator’s recommendations. Luxottica’s failure to live up to its obligations under the OECD Guidelines creates reputational and financial risk for the company and its investors as it seeks to expand its global footprint in North America and other regions.”

    “There is still time for Luxottica to rectify its refusal to adopt the Italian conciliator’s recommendations. We urge Luxottica to return to the table with IUE-CWA for agreement on management neutrality and other fair rules for organizing. Many firms have adopted such neutrality agreements with their union, most recently Microsoft and General Electric. Many other companies have reached global framework agreements with unions promising to respect workers’ organizing and bargaining rights worldwide.”

    “If trade unions are unable to reach an agreement with Luxottica on fair rules for union organizing, we will explore other avenues to persuade Luxottica to halt its violations of international standards on workers’ freedom of association in the United States. These include increased engagement with socially responsible investors, and the enforcement of U.S. and European due diligence laws on human rights in Luxottica’s supply chain. But the solution is really simple: Luxottica can apply the same standards of good faith and respect for trade unions that it maintains in Italy to its operations in the United States.”

    IndustriALL General Secretary Atle Høie issued the following statement on the Italian NCP’s findings:

    “This case exposes what the OECD considers actions taken by Luxottica in violation with the OECD guidelines on multinational companies. The conclusions clearly denounce anti union behavior put in place by companies during organizing. Such union busting tactics are not uncommon in the US, but have now been unequivocally condemned by the OECD contact point in Italy. We demand that Luxottica follow the recommendations, take a neutral stance in future organizing activities and invite CWA back to the table.”

    UNI Global Union General Secretary Christy Hoffman issued the following statement on the Italian NCP’s findings in the case:

    “It is shameful that companies operating in the US routinely believe that they can violate international standards with impunity. The NCP in this case did not back down from calling this out as a violation of the Guidelines. The NCP also took a clear decision that the Italian management was responsible for anti-union actions of its US subsidiary, another good precedent. The company should reverse course, follow the rules on which we all depend, and go back to the table with CWA. An end to this kind of union-busting is long overdue.”

    Background and Details

    The report comes at the end of a six-month conciliation process held from September 2023 to March 2024 under the aegis of the National Contact Point (NCP), which is an authority constituted by the Italian Government’s Ministry of Businesses, following the NCP’s review of the unions’ complaint that Luxottica created a “climate of fear” which destroyed an organizing effort by American workers at Luxottica’s North American logistics hub in McDonough (Atlanta), Georgia in 2021.

    Italy-based Luxottica (EssilorLuxottica following its 2017 merger with global French-based lens producer Essilor) is a major employer in the United States, which is its largest single market, with operations in eyewear retail, vision insurance, ophthalmic labs, and lens and frame manufacturing.

    The IUE-CWA, joined by the AFL-CIO and global unions IndustriALL and UNI, complained that management’s aggressive anti-union tactics violated workers’ organizing rights under the OECD Guidelines.

    Luxottica blatantly disregarded these labor principles in 2021 despite its obligations under the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises on Responsible Business Conduct which call on multinational companies to respect core labor standards, including the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining.

    Instead, as workers at its Atlanta logistics center sought to unionize for better health protections and fair wages during the COVID-19 crisis, Luxottica launched an aggressive anti-union campaign.

    American management at the Georgia center forced employees into “captive-audience” meetings in which managers and anti-union consultants vilified trade unions as swindlers who only want workers’ dues payments, and told employees they could lose pay and benefits if they support the union. Management repeated the same insults and threats in an anti-union website and in text messages, workplace posters, and TV screens throughout the plant. Luxottica interfered with organizers’ access to the workers. The climate of fear and intimidation became so severe that IUE-CWA ultimately withdrew its organizing effort.

    Such actions would be unthinkable in Italy, where unions have long enjoyed collective bargaining relationships with Luxottica management based on good faith and mutual respect. Italian unions joined the call for Luxottica to apply these same principles when workers in its American facilities exercise rights to freedom of association.

    CWA Union representatives were optimistic about reaching an agreement with Luxottica in the NCP conciliation process when it began with a meeting in Rome in September 2023 under guidance of conciliator Enzo Cannizzaro, a prominent Italian international law professor at the University of Rome and at Columbia Law School. The unions hoped to reach an agreement with Luxottica based on the conciliator’s recommendations, which included measures for management neutrality, union representatives’ access to facilities to meet with workers, and other measures adhering to international labor rights standards under the OECD Guidelines.

    The union accepted the conciliator’s recommendations. But, advised by its American anti-union lawyers, Luxottica management refused even to respond to the conciliator’s recommendations. The conciliator closed the proceeding in April 2024 without a resolution to the dispute.

    The Unions contend that Luxottica failed to engage in good faith during the OECD’s six-month conciliation process. Rather than seeking a resolution, the company obstructed the process and ignored opportunities provided to rectify its transgressions.

    In its Final Report, the Italian NCP makes clear why the process failed.The NCP also reiterated the Conciliator’s recommendation as to how the Company should honor the principle of non-interference moving forward:

    “The owners and the management of a Company … should refrain from expressing their opinion on matters of unionisation, under the principle on non-interference, in order to contribute to a fair and equitable framework for industrial relations, as also pursued by the OECD Guidelines.”

    The NCP concluded its Final Report with

    “regrets that it has not been possible to resolve the issues raised by applying the Guidelines,” stressing that “settling the case on the basis of the Guidelines’ provisions, rather than by applying the national law, alone, would have ensured a balanced, constructive and long-lasting solution. Indeed, the Guidelines themselves refer to principles and standards of international law.”

    Final Considerations and Next Steps

    The Italian NCP’s findings put Luxottica at a crossroads. IUE-CWA, AFL-CIO, IndustriALL and UNI union confederations demand that Luxottica adopt a fair framework that guarantees neutrality and non-interference in future organizing efforts across the U.S. By doing so, Luxottica can begin to repair the damage caused by its anti-union practices and demonstrate its commitment to the workers who drive its business forward.

    As pressure mounts, IUE-CWA remains resolute in its fight for fair labor standards and urges Luxottica to make a decisive shift toward responsible business conduct worldwide. The union will continue to monitor the situation closely and advocate for vision workers’ rights at every turn.

    For more information on the NCP Final Statement and its implications for Luxottica’s labor practices, contact CWA Communications at +1 (202) 434-1168 and comms@cwa-union.org

    ###

    About National Contact Points for RBC

    “National Contact Points for Responsible Business Conduct (NCPs for RBC) are agencies established by governments. Their mandate is twofold: to promote the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, and related due diligence guidance, and to handle cases (referred to as “specific instances”) as a non-judicial grievance mechanism. To date, 51 governments have an NCP for RBC. Also see: https://mneguidelines.oecd.org/ncps/

    All 51 governments adhering to the OECD Guidelines have the legal obligation to set up an NCP. Today, NCPs make up a network and a community of practitioners, dealing with a wide array of impacts involving companies either through their operations or their supply chains. In 2020, NCPs celebrated 20 years as non-judicial grievance mechanisms. Find out more about NCPs | Browse resources on NCPs”

    The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an intergovernmental organization with 38 member countries from Europe, North America, South America and Asia-Pacific, founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade. It originates from the organization set up to manage US Marshall Aid to post-WW2 Europe. The United States is one of its founding members. It is headquartered in Paris.

    About CWA

    The Communications Workers of America (CWA) represents working people in telecommunications, customer service, media, airlines, health care, public service and education, manufacturing, tech and other fields. IUE-CWA is the Industrial Division of the CWA, it represents manufacturing and industrial workers in a wide range of industries including automotive, aerospace, furniture, and appliances, and vision.

    About AFL-CIO

    Headquartered in Washington DC, USA, the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) is the democratic, voluntary federation of 60 national and international labor unions that represent more than 12.5 million working people in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.

    About IndustriALL Global Union

    IndustriALL Global Union is a global union federation, founded in Copenhagen on 19 June 2012. IndustriALL represents more than 50 million working people in more than 140 countries, working across the supply chains in mining, energy and manufacturing sectors at the global level. The Global headquarters is in Geneva, Switzerland.

    About UNI Global Union

    UNI Global Union, formally Union Network International, is a Global Union Federation for the skills and services sectors, uniting national and regional trade unions. It has affiliated unions in 150 countries representing 20 million workers. The Global headquarters is in Nyon, Switzerland.

    About EssilorLuxottica

    EssilorLuxottica was created through the 2017 merger between French multinational corporation Essilor and Italian multinational corporation Luxottica, with Essilor headquartered in France and Luxottica in Italy. EssilorLuxottica is a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of ophthalmic lenses, frames and sunglasses. With over 200,000 employees across 150 countries, 650 operations facilities and 18,000 stores, in 2023 the Company generated consolidated revenue of Euro 25.4 billion. EssilorLuxottica is home to advanced lens technologies including Varilux, Stellest and Transitions, eyewear brands including Ray-Ban and Oakley, luxury licensed brands and world-class retailers including LensCrafters and Sunglass Hut. EssilorLuxottica shares are traded on the Euronext Paris market and are included in the Euro Stoxx 50 and CAC 40 indices. Codes and symbols: ISIN: FR0000121667; Reuters: ESLX.PA; Bloomberg: EL:FP. www.essilorluxottica.com.

    MIL OSI USA News –