Headline: FACT CHECK: DHS Requests to Replace 20-Year-Old Coast Guard Jet is for Safety
ASHINGTON – The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) today fact-checked false accusations by media outlets surrounding the United States Coast Guard’s (USCG) planned replacement of a jet that is more than 20 years old
“The current CG-101 G550 is over 20 years old, outside of Gulfstream’s service life, and well beyond operational usage hours for a corporate aircraft
This is a matter of safety
Much like the US Coast Guard’s ships that are well beyond their service life and safe operational usage, Coast Guard’s aircraft are, too
The Trump Administration is taking action to restore our Nation’s finest maritime Armed Service to a capable fighting force,” said Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin
The majority of authorized users for the Long-Range Command and Control Aircraft (LRCCA) program are Coast Guard leadership, including four-star and three-star admirals
One of the Service’s two aircraft is 22 years old and faces significant avionics and communications obsolescence issues
The maintenance issues of the older jet directly impact its availability for critical missions and hinders the USCG’s ability to provide reliable and secure transportation for Coast Guard leadership
The Coast Guard and its leadership—which includes the Secretary of Homeland Security—require world-class, effective command and control capabilities
Significant constraints on capabilities and communications in the current aircraft program threaten to limit the Department and USCG’s ability to carry out its critical mission
These efforts will ensure secure, reliable communications and meet the demand for continuity of operations and mission-ready command and control capability
Presently, the Coast Guard has only two Long-Range Command and Control Aircraft to provide safe and reliable air transportation and communications capability for key leadership within DHS and the Coast Guard
What you need to know: The state is investing almost $1.7 billion for improvements to California’s highway system, including $86.5 million for improvements to infrastructure damaged during the Los Angeles firestorms earlier this year.
SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced that the California Transportation Commission (CTC) has allocated nearly $1.7 billion to help improve and strengthen the state highway system. Guided by Governor Gavin Newsom’s Build More, Faster – For All infrastructure agenda, these improvements will make California communities safer and more climate resilient.
In addition to these proactive, long-range efforts, the CTC allocated $86.5 million to repair vital roadways and other transportation infrastructure damaged during recent wildfires and storms in Southern California.
“Today’s monumental investment puts Californians’ tax dollars to work making critical safety and resiliency improvements to highways throughout the state that support the travel of millions of residents each day. We’re also directing millions to help repair vital infrastructure damaged by the Los Angeles fires.”
Governor Gavin Newsom
Projects include:
$195.5 million to rehabilitate roadway and drainage systems, add a bike trail and pedestrian bridge, as well as upgrade safety along Interstate 805 in the cities of San Diego, Chula Vista and National City.
$129 million to replace the existing Cordelia Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Facility along westbound Interstate 80 near Fairfield.
$30 million to replace a retaining wall and rebuild a slope drapery protection system near Big Rock Road in Malibu and reconstruct hillsides above State Route 1 near Mulholland Drive, all of which were impacted by the Palisades Fire and rainstorms.
“Investments made today support Caltrans’ mission to build and maintain a transportation system that helps Californians now and decades into the future,” said Mike Keever, Acting Director for Caltrans. “This funding translates into safer travel, more accessible mobility options and strengthening our roadways to protect all travelers during extreme weather events.”
Of the total allocation this month, $655 million came via Senate Bill (SB) 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, and nearly $567 million from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021 (IIJA).
IIJA, also known as the federal bipartisan infrastructure bill, is a once-in-a-generation investment in our nation’s infrastructure to improve the sustainability and resiliency of our country’s energy, water, broadband and transportation systems. California has received nearly $62 billion in federal infrastructure funding since its passage, including investments to upgrade the state’s roads, bridges, rail, public transit, airports, ports and waterways. The funding alone has already created more than 170,000 jobs in California.
Meanwhile, SB 1 invests approximately $5 billion annually toward transportation projects. It provides funding split between the state and local agencies. Road projects progress through construction phases more quickly based on the availability of funds, including projects that are partially funded by SB 1.
For more information visit, Build.ca.gov.
Press releases, Recent news
Recent news
May 16, 2025
News SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom kicked off #WorldTradeMonth with a round of key international interviews with journalists from major broadcast networks in Canada, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. In the interviews, Governor Newsom addressed…
May 15, 2025
News Sacramento, California – Governor Gavin Newsom today issued a proclamation declaring May 2025 as “Small Business Month.”The text of the proclamation and a copy can be found below: PROCLAMATIONCalifornia’s more than 4.2 million small businesses – the most of any…
May 15, 2025
News Sacramento, California — Governor Gavin Newsom today condemned U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for calling on the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) to conduct a “complete review” of mifepristone — the safe, effective, and…
On 17 May, the European Investment Bank Group marks the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOT), taking place during the European Diversity Month.
The EIB Group reaffirms its commitment to respect, protect and promote the full and equal enjoyment of human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex individuals.
This year’s theme, “The Power of Communities,” highlights the strength and support that come from fostering inclusive and united communities. It underscores the vital role that each of us plays in creating a world where everyone can live freely and authentically.
The EIB Group is committed to:
Be an ambassador for LGBTIQ+ rights in our operations worldwide, ensuring that LGBTIQ+ individuals have equal access to the benefits of EIB Group financed projects.
Promoting an inclusive culture of diverse voices, one that is collaborative, respectful and kind, where staff feel a sense of belonging and no one is left behind.
Be recognised as a safe and inclusive employer for LGBTIQ+ talent, where everyone can express themselves freely and there is zero tolerance for discrimination, in all its forms.
AMENDMENTS 001-003 REPORT on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EU) 2023/956 as regards simplifying and strengthening the carbon border adjustment mechanism (COM(2025)0087 – C10-0035/2025 – 2025/0039(COD)) Committee on the Environment, Climate and Food Safety Rapporteur: Antonio Decaro
Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Marat Khusnullin: The roofing of the new building of the State Historical Museum in Moscow has been completed
In Moscow, the roofing of the new branch of the State Historical Museum (GIM), which is being built next to the Novodevichy Convent in the Khamovniki district, has been completed. This was reported by Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin.
“Today, Russia will host the Night of Museums, and tomorrow we will celebrate International Museum Day. This day is a great opportunity to emphasize the importance of preserving cultural heritage and developing museum work in our country. Russia’s construction industry contributes to the creation and renovation of museum spaces. For example, the construction of the new building of the State Historical Museum, which started in October 2023, is moving forward successfully. Specialists from the Unified Customer Construction Company are building a modern museum complex with an area of over 10,000 square meters, which will be able to receive up to 400 visitors daily. The roofing work was recently completed, and the building’s facades are already 80% complete. All work is being carried out in accordance with the established schedule. The development of museum infrastructure is not just the construction of new buildings, it is the creation of a space for dialogue between the past and the present, between cultural heritage and modern technologies. I am confident that the new building of the State Historical Museum will become another important point of attraction for lovers of history and culture,” said Marat Khusnullin.
The Deputy Prime Minister added that the construction of the new exhibition complex will significantly expand the exhibition space of the Historical Museum. The new branch will house museum exhibits and will have multifunctional lecture halls, a storage facility, a tour desk, and premises for holding cultural events.
“The new branch of the State Historical Museum will be equipped with all the necessary modern display and stock equipment. Specialists will create comfortable conditions for studying and displaying collections, as well as for the safe storage of museum valuables. Work on the site is carried out within the framework of the comprehensive state program “Construction”, curated by the Ministry of Construction of Russia,” said Deputy Minister of Construction and Housing and Public Utilities Yuri Gordeev.
The central exhibition of the new museum center will be dedicated to the 500th anniversary of the founding of the Novodevichy Convent, which was celebrated in 2024. It is planned to begin the installation of the exhibition and its semantic content after the completion of all construction and installation works in early 2026.
“To date, all five floors of the building, including the underground floor, have been fully erected at the site, and roofing work has been completed. Inside the building, specialists are now actively finishing the premises and installing engineering systems. At the same time, the storage facility is already ready, and the installation of rack equipment will begin there soon,” said Karen Oganesyan, General Director of the Unified Customer Production and Production Company.
In the summer, specialists will begin to improve the adjacent territory – creating pedestrian zones and landscaping, which will create a truly comfortable urban environment for residents of nearby houses and guests of the new museum complex.
The construction of the facility is being carried out within the boundaries of the buffer zone of the Novodevichy Convent ensemble, included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Marat Khusnullin also emphasized that the construction of new museum buildings and the restoration of historical sites are being carried out in different regions of the country. For example, under the supervision of the “Single Customer in the Sphere of Construction”, a new building of the Ryazan Historical and Architectural Museum-Reserve and a new building of the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow have been completed, which are already successfully operating. The Local History Museum in Mariupol is also ready and awaiting opening. The reconstruction of the Polytechnic Museum in Moscow, the restoration and construction of the Pushkin Museum in Moscow and the L. N. Tolstoy Museum-Estate “Yasnaya Polyana” in the Tula Region are continuing.
The Deputy Prime Minister added that, on the instructions of the President, large-scale cultural and educational complexes are being built in four cities. Branches of the Tretyakov Gallery will open in Kaliningrad and Vladivostok. A branch of the Russian Museum will be located in Kemerovo, and the Russian State Art Gallery will be located in Sevastopol. The general contractor for the construction of the cultural clusters is Stroytransgaz.
In addition, work is underway to restore museums in the territories of new regions. During a recent working trip, the Deputy Prime Minister visited three such sites in Mariupol.
Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.
Following his piece onthe late Pope Francis, Jefferson Chua continues his reflections on the relationship between the Papacy of the Roman Catholic Church and climate change, now in the hands of a new pontiff.
There is a photo of Robert Francis Prevost, back then when he was still archbishop in Chiclayo, Peru, wading through the floodwater that devastated his parish during the historic 2017 El Niño floods. He struck a calm figure who had little to no qualms about being in the middle of a disaster. The photo made me think: what does Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, think of climate change, and–more importantly– the solutions needed to address it?
There are quite a number of clues as to what he would have thought about climate change. He largely aligns with the late Pope Francis’s pivot towards the environment and the Laudato Si agenda, in urging the church to transform words into action in addressing the climate crisis. He has likewise called for a “non-tyrannical relationship” with nature as a key ingredient in climate action, while warning of serious consequences brought about by technological innovation if it is not grounded in a reciprocal relationship with nature.
In the same breath he also mentions the Vatican’s recent adoption of solar power as well as the purchase of electric vehicles as positive steps in addressing climate change. In his younger years he has also pushed for petitions and shared opinions that seem to align with more urgent climate action and international cooperation.
I am drawn to the pope’s choice of name. His nominal predecessor, Leo XIII, stands among the giants of the petrine ministry because he took on arguably the greatest challenge of the church during his time: its relationship with the modern world. His encyclical, Rerum Novarum, not only articulated the church’s positionality in the modernizing and industrializing world, but also spoke about the dangers of unchecked capitalism and its impacts on rights, especially that of workers and laborers. In other words, Leo XIII signalled a critical gaze on unchecked profiteering and how this pursuit of more growth and wealth comes at the expense of the rights of those that were instrumental in achieving that wealth.
I wonder if Leo XIV will be able to transpose this critical gaze onto arguably the greatest challenge of our time, the climate crisis. Our era is characterized by the near-total domination of the corporate few who have reaped in record profits at the expense of everyone. Climate impacts have been increasing in intensity and regularity more than ever, resulting in staggering global losses. In 2024 alone, estimates vary from insurance payouts worth USD 137 billion, to upwards of USD 229 billion with just the ten costliest disasters of last year.
In contrast, just the five largest investor-owned oil and gas companies–Shell, Exxon Mobil, British Petroleum, Chevron, and Total Energies–earned USD 102 billion in 2024. The figure becomes even more mind-boggling if one looks at their profits in the last decade, which amounted to almost USD 800 billion. This greed is underlined by their business practices, with all of them announcing in different manners of speaking that they will not be phasing out oil and gas and will be cutting investments in green and renewable energy, while at the same time spending astronomical amounts of money to run advertising and marketing campaigns that paint a rosy picture of their supposed concern for the environment and climate action.
Taking a broader view lays bare this gross inequality: the world’s wealthiest 10% has caused two-thirds of global warming since 1990, which boils down to not just individual lifestyle choices, but more importantly to the concentration of wealth held by a very few but powerful group of people.
It is amid this sad and alarming backdrop that we find Leo XIV, who inherits a church in a world that is increasingly more difficult to live in, especially by those at the frontlines of the climate crisis. It is this world that also beckons on Leo XIV to transform the church “from words to action.” Climate action must go beyond platitudes and pursue accountability.
There are hopeful signals within the church. A good example would be the Philippines, which constantly ranks as among the most vulnerable countries to climate impacts. For instance, the Roman Catholic Church in the country has set 2025 as the target year when it will be fully divesting from coal and fossil gas investments. Religious-run academic institutions such as Mapua University has likewise pronounced that it too will be divesting from fossil fuels. Church-based grassroots communities and priests have likewise supported environmental defenders and indigenous groups against unchecked transition mineral mining, and have called for holistic climate accountability policies such as the CLIMA Bill. That there is a wealth of examples in the frontiers of the climate crisis should push Leo XIV to take on the fight for climate justice beyond discursive urging. He inherits a church that is suffering precisely because it is in the frontlines. In this manner, Leo XIV himself, through the office entrusted to him, also inherits this moral responsibility to act.
Perhaps none can encapsulate this moral imperative of his papacy better than an example from his adopted home, Peru. Saul Luciano Lliuya, a farmer from Huaraz, Peru, filed a case against German energy company RWE AG. Initially filed in 2015, Lliuya contested that RWE’s emissions–which is considered one of the biggest emitters in Europe–had a direct impact on the climate that is threatening the claimant’s home. After a successful appeal process in 2017 and initial hearings in March 2025, the court will issue an announcement this May. Lliuya’s case takes on and represents an increasingly-familiar experience by climate-impacted frontline communities of no accountability and increasing impacts. One can imagine Leo XIV, in his white cassock, bearing witness to the increasing frequency of floods that Lliuya and countless others are experiencing and, perhaps, likewise add his influential voice to the growing chorus of those calling for accountability. If he is true to his name, and if his papacy signals an unbroken line from Francis’s concerns in Laudato Si, then there is no other alternative to calling out those who are most responsible for the climate crisis: not just individuals, not just countries, but corporations that have accumulated so much wealth while the least of us suffer the worst consequences of a common home in crisis.
Jefferson Chua is a Greenpeace Campaigner working on climate, based in the Philippines.
You might want to check out Greenpeace Philippines’ petition called Courage for Climate, a drive in support of real policy and legal solutions in the pursuit of climate justice.
Ground and air search efforts were conducted today (May 18) in Pictou County as the missing persons investigation into the disappearance of Lilly and Jack Sullivan continues.
More than 115 volunteer searchers from Colchester, East Hants, Eastern Shore, Halifax, Musquodoboit Valley, Pictou County, Pugwash, Springhill, Strait Area, Valley, and West Hants ground search and rescue and the Civil Air Search and Rescue Association focused on specific areas around Gairloch Rd. in an effort to locate Lilly and Jack and advance the RCMP investigation. The search was supported by Nova Scotia Public Safety Field Communications and EHS Emergency Preparedness Special Operations.
This search follows a large-scale air and ground search that began on May 2 and was scaled back on May 7 in favour of more specific searches.
“We extend our sincere appreciation to the search and rescue volunteers who have selflessly given up over 10,000 hours of their time since this search began,” says S/Sgt. Curtis MacKinnon, Pictou County District RCMP. “Their tireless commitment in truly gruelling conditions is appreciated by both the RCMP and the greater community.”
This weekend’s search will be carefully reviewed and assessed by investigators and search managers to help in planning any further ground and air search efforts.
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — U.S. Air Force Col. Barry Deibert was promoted to the rank of brigadier general during a ceremony at the Wyoming National Guard’s Joint Force Readiness Center on May 17, 2025.
Deibert is known for his integrity, honesty and perseverance—qualities that have shaped his decades of service and earned him the respect of those he leads. As the assistant adjutant general for air and commander of the Wyoming Air National Guard, he oversees more than 1,200 Airmen who support a wide range of national, state and community missions.
Maj. Gen. Greg Porter, adjutant general of Wyoming, presided over the ceremony and commended Deibert for his lifelong dedication to service and community in addition to being a caring leader.
“You look at his entire life, and he is the epitome of a citizen Airman—serving full time while also teaching in our schools,” said Porter. “Every chance Deibert has to make an impact—to make the world and our state a better place—he takes it. It’s a privilege to be here today to celebrate you.”
Surrounded by friends, family, and fellow Airmen and Soldiers, Brig. Gen. Deibert received his new rank in a ceremony filled with pride and tradition. Among the honored guests was his father, August Anton Deibert a 97-year-old U.S. Army veteran who is the recipient of the Purple Heart and Bronze Star for his service in the Korean War.
The importance of family was a theme throughout the ceremony. Porter acknowledged their vital role, noting that continued service would not be possible without their support.
Deibert’s wife, Pat, and daughter, Darcy, had the honor of pinning on his brigadier general rank. The pinning ceremony, a time-honored tradition, marks the first time the new rank is officially placed on the uniform. The star, representing general officer rank, traces its lineage to a 1780 decree by Gen. George Washington during the War for American Independence. It is customary for close family or friends to participate, symbolizing the contributions they’ve made to the officer’s career.
In his first remarks as a general officer, Deibert spoke with humility and reflected on his journey, including an earlier retirement before being asked—several times—to return to service. Eventually, he answered the call.
“Standing here today, wearing this rank—it’s humbling,” said Deibert.
With humor, he added, “That could be a trivia question: How long does it take for an airman basic to make brigadier general? 39 years.” The audience laughed, and he continued, “But it’s a culmination of years of service, sacrifice, and support—and I’m not talking about mine. I’m talking about everyone else in this room. This promotion isn’t about a single person. It’s about all the people I’ve had the privilege to serve with. To the Airmen I’ve worked alongside—you’ve inspired me and continue to. Airmen are the magic.”
Deibert closed by saying he views his new role not as a reward, but as a responsibility.
“This wasn’t in my original plan. But I’m humbled and grateful for the support. Stay strong, be proud, and fly for the brand.”
The ceremony concluded with the singing of the Air Force song, followed by the Army song—in honor of his father, Corporal August Anton Deibert.
Australia has become world-famous for its wine, but the industry faces an uncertain future. Too many grapes grown amid falling consumer demand, an oversupply of budget wine, and an undersupply of premium wine are just some of the problems besetting the industry.
There are still many small and medium-sized wineries across Australia. But the industry is dominated by a few large players, as well as “vertical integration” with ownership linkages between wineries and retailers.
Just this month, a merger between global drinks giant Pernod Ricard’s Australian, New Zealand and Spanish wine brands and Accolade Wines (one of Australia’s largest winemakers) was completed, creating a new giant – Vinarchy – to be based in Adelaide with A$1.5 billion in annual revenue.
This move will involve an estimated cull of up to 50 wine brands, which speaks to a broader story of growing concentration. Numerous Australian wine companies have come up for sale in recent years, and the industry is undergoing rationalisation.
The current pressures will require an overall reduction in wine production, and a focus on premium over ordinary wines. Grape-growers and some smaller wineries are likely to be most affected.
Still the top drop
According to Wine Australia, the Australian wine industry currently has about 6,000 grape growers and 2,156 wineries. It employs 163,790 people (full- and part-time) and contributes $45 billion to the Australian economy each year.
This large size shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. Wine is the most popular alcoholic drink in Australia. But troubles have been brewing for the industry for years.
Domestic wine consumption has been in steady decline, down 9% since 2016–17.
However, the picture is nuanced. Wine isn’t a staple product; it is a discretionary purchase. Prices in Australia can range from less than $5 to well over $1,000 per bottle, and palates vary significantly among consumers.
Price is generally regarded as an indicator of quality. Wine selling in Australia in the “ordinary” price range of less than $15 per bottle is declining, but wine selling in the “premium” ($15 per bottle and above) price range is increasing.
In the face of decreased global wine consumption, Australia’s shrinking domestic market has also been faced with a steady decline in wine exports. This is problematic for producers looking to exports to offset declines in domestic sales.
A warm country
These woes are impacting the wine industry in different ways at different points along the supply chain. Let’s start with grape-growing.
The current challenge is for growers of “ordinary-quality” grapes in the shrinking marketplace. The Riverina and Riverland areas are the main grape-producing areas of Australia and achieve a low price per tonne.
There is still high demand for “premium-quality” grapes but these are generally grown in select regions of Australia, typically with a cooler climate.
Unsurprisingly, grapes from warm inland regions of Australia account for 72% of wine grape production, at an average price of $345 per tonne, whereas grapes from cool temperate regions achieve an average price of $1,531 per tonne.
The future impacts of climate change need to be assessed, and are already playing into growers’ decisions. Cooler regions are becoming more highly sought after for grape-growing.
Coupled with increased demand for premium grapes, this will make warm inland regions increasingly problematic. Unlike seasonally planted crops such as vegetables and grain, new grape vines require three years after planting before bearing decent levels of fruit. Farmers must determine the most appropriate long-term use of their land.
Concerns about climate change are driving interest in cool regions – such as Tasmania’s Tamar Valley. Marcin Madry/Shutterstock
The challenge of standing out
Many of Australia’s 2,156 wineries are small-scale (typically privately owned). Other wineries are much larger, with extensive resources. Most consumers are largely unaware of most of these wineries – how many wine brands can you list?
Such diversity already presents a challenge for various wineries trying to market themselves. Adding to this, a large number of Australian wine brands are owned by just a few large industry players, some with links to retailers via vertical integration.
Standing out in a crowded market is a big challenge for small producers. Sirbouman/Shutterstock
How can wineries survive?
With the trend towards less consumption overall, and towards premium-quality wines instead of ordinary-quality wines, some wineries may need to shift their focus.
On the challenges facing the industry, acclaimed Victorian winemaker Rick Kinzbrunner told me:
We need a better balance of supply and demand and especially more emphasis on top quality wines at reasonable prices.
Why this matters to you
If you’re a wine drinker, current wine industry issues may seem irrelevant. But the ongoing oversupply of ordinary-quality wine for the near future offers plenty of price discounts.
For consumers of premium wines, given current high demand, be wary: does what you’re getting quality-wise match the price? Some wines marketed at high prices don’t have the quality to match.
Consumers may wish to increase direct contact with wineries (via cellar doors, websites and mailing lists) and independent retailers to expand their options.
Winners and losers will emerge as inevitable industry change occurs.
Paul Chad does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chiara Holgate, Senior Research Fellow, ARC Centre of Excellence for Weather of the 21st Century, Australian National University
Swathes of South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia are in the grip of drought as they experience some of the lowest rainfall totals on record.
Farmers are spending eye-watering amounts of money buying feed, or selling stock to stay afloat.
Some towns are already on water restrictions. Those not connected to the mains water system are in a perilous situation. In the Adelaide Hills, water is being trucked in to fill empty rainwater tanks and dams.
The story playing out across southern Australia could be a glimpse of what’s to come. Our recent research suggests southern Australia may experience longer and more intense droughts in the future, as the climate changes.
Parts of South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia are experiencing serious rainfall deficiencies. Australian Bureau of Meteorology
How bad is this drought?
Parts of southern Australia have been experiencing drier than normal conditions for well over a year.
In Adelaide, the desalination plant has ramped up to maintain water supply. Similarly, Victoria’s desal plant has fired up for the first time since 2022 as dam levels fall.
These kinds of weather systems have been notably absent from southern Australia in recent months. Instead, slow-moving high-pressure systems, which typically bring warm and dry conditions, have been the standout feature across southern Australia.
For Australia, the driest inhabited continent, heavy rains are what keep drought at bay. Last spring and summer, drought conditions were building in parts of Queensland and northern New South Wales. But then Tropical Cyclone Alfred brought heavy rains, dumping up to four times as much rain as these areas usually get in February and March.
Similarly, heavy rains at the end of last year helped parts of northern and central WA avoid drought conditions.
Unfortunately, western Victoria and southern SA have had no such luck.
Drought is more likely to break if weather systems and climate drivers are favorable, such as the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) in its negative phase, the Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) in its wet phase, the El Niño–Southern Oscillation in its La Niña phase, the Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation (IPO) in its negative phase and the Southern Annular Mode (SAM) active. Background climate change can affect all of these drivers. Holgate et al 2025 Communications Earth & Environment, CC BY-NC-ND
How long will the drought last?
If farmers, water authorities and policymakers knew how much longer this drought would last, they could make clear plans. Keep or sell livestock? Impose water restrictions or wait?
Unfortunately, drought timing is very hard to predict. As our research shows, the climate processes that bring weather systems laden with heavy rain are complex.
But we do know heavy and persistent rain is needed to break the drought. And the current forecast shows there’s a decent chance of that as we head towards spring. Though forecasts can change, and those with skin in the game will have their eyes glued to next month’s update to the Bureau of Meteorology’s rainfall outlook.
It also helps that we’re heading into what’s usually the rainier time of year. This means the odds of receiving decent rain are higher at this time of year than if we were heading into summer.
Climate and water long-range forecast, issued 15 May 2025 (Bureau of Meteorology)
Dry and drier
Over the past few decades, southern Australia has become drier. Drying has been most pronounced during the cooler months, between April and October. Some parts of southern Australia have also become more drought-prone, with the number of months spent in drought increasing over this time.
Maps of the current dry conditions across southern Australia closely follow the regions projected to experience longer and more frequent drought conditions in future.
It’s too early to draw a clear line between climate change and this particular drought. But the weight of evidence shows southern droughts are likely to strike more often in the future. The Tinderbox Drought from 2017–19, for instance, was the first Australian drought to show a possible worsening from climate change.
The good news? We now know more about how Australian droughts work. This means we can now be more confident in the direction of Australia’s water future than in past decades.
We must urgently use this new knowledge to develop innovative solutions that will allow Australia to thrive in a climate of increasingly variable water availability. Solutions will involve setting sustainable limits on water use, introducing water recycling and improving efficiency, among other measures.
Though solutions may look different in different parts of Australia, one thing rings true everywhere: we all need to make every drop count.
Chiara Holgate receives funding from the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for the Weather of the 21st Century.
Ailie Gallant receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water.
Medicinal cannabis refers to legally prescribed cannabis products. These are either the plant itself, or naturally occurring ingredients extracted from the plant. These ingredients, such as THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol), are called cannabinoids. Some cannabinoids are also made in labs to act like the ones in the plant.
Medicinal cannabis comes in different forms, such as oils, capsules, dried flower (used in a vaporiser), sprays and edible forms such as gummies.
Since regulatory changes in 2016 made medicinal cannabis more accessible, Australia’s regulator has issued more than 700,000 approvals. (But approvals for medicinal cannabis don’t reflect the actual number of patients treated. One patient may have multiple approvals, and not all approved products are necessarily prescribed or supplied.)
Around half of the approvals have been for chronic pain that isn’t caused by cancer.
In Australia, chronic pain affects around one in five Australians aged 45 and over, with an enormous impact on people’s lives.
So what does the current evidence tell us about the effectiveness of medicinal cannabis for chronic pain?
What the evidence shows
A 2021 review of 32 randomised controlled trials involving nearly 5,200 people with chronic pain, examined the effects of medicinal cannabis or cannabinoids. The study found a small improvements in pain and physical functioning compared with a placebo.
A previous review found that to achieve a 30% reduction in pain for one person, 24 people would need to be treated with medicinal cannabis.
The 2021 review also found small improvements in sleep, and no consistent benefits for other quality of life measures, consistent with previous reviews.
This doesn’t mean medicinal cannabis doesn’t help anyone. But it suggests that, on average, the benefits are limited to a smaller number of people.
Many pain specialists have questioned if the evidence for medicinal cannabis is sufficient to support its use for pain.
The Faculty of Pain Medicine, the professional body dedicated to the training and education of specialist pain physicians, recommends medical cannabis should be limited to clinical trials.
Guidance from Australia’s regulator, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), on medicinal cannabis for chronic non-cancer pain reflects these uncertainties.
The TGA states there is limited evidence medicinal cannabis provides clinically significant pain relief for many pain conditions. Therefore, the potential benefits versus harms should be considered patient-by-patient.
The TGA says medicinal cannabis should only be trialled when other standard therapies have been tried and did not provide enough pain relief.
In terms of which type of medical cannabis product to use, due to concerns about the safety of inhaled cannabis, the TGA considers pharmaceutical-grade products (such as nabiximols or extracts containing THC and/or CBD) to be safer.
This evidence may feel at odds with the experiences of people who report relief from medicinal cannabis.
In clinical practice, it’s common for individuals to respond differently based on their health conditions, beliefs and many other factors. What works well for one person may not work for another.
Research helps us understand what outcomes are typical or expected for most people, but there is variation. Some people may find medicinal cannabis improves their pain, sleep or general well-being – especially if other treatments haven’t helped.
What are the side effects and risks?
Like any medicine, medicinal cannabis has potential side effects. These are usually mild to moderate, including drowsiness or sedation, dizziness, impaired concentration, a dry mouth, nausea and cognitive slowing.
These side effects are often greater with higher-potency THC products. These are becoming more common on the Australian market. High-potency THC products represent more than half of approvals in 2025.
After using cannabis for a long time, some people need to take higher doses to get the same effect. Nuva Frames/Shutterstock
Medical cannabis can also interact with other medications, especially those that cause drowsiness (such as opioids), medicines for mental illness, anti-epileptics, blood thinners and immunosuppressants.
Even cannabidiol (CBD), which isn’t considered intoxicating like THC, has been linked to serious drug interactions.
These risks are greater when cannabis is prescribed by a doctor who doesn’t regularly manage the patient’s chronic pain or isn’t in contact with their other health-care providers. Since medicinal cannabis is often prescribed through separate telehealth clinics, this fragmented care may increase the risk of harmful interactions.
Another concern is developing cannabis use disorder (commonly understood as “addiction”). A 2024 study found one in four people using medical cannabis develop a cannabis use disorder. Withdrawal symptoms – such as irritability, sleep problems, or cravings – can occur with frequent and heavy use.
For some people, tolerance can also develop with long-term use, meaning you need to take higher doses to get the same effect. This can increase the risk of developing a cannabis use disorder.
How does it compare to other treatments?
Like many medicines for chronic pain, the effectiveness of medicinal cannabis is modest, and is not recommended as a sole treatment.
There’s good evidence that, for conditions like back pain, interventions such as exercise, cognitive behavioural therapy and pain self-management education can help and may have fewer risks than many medicines.
But there are challenges with how accessible and affordable these treatments are for many Australians, especially outside major cities.
So where does this leave patients?
The growing use of medicinal cannabis for chronic pain reflects both a high burden of pain in the community and gaps in access to effective care. While some patients report benefits, the current evidence suggests these are likely to be small for most people, and must be weighed against the risks.
If you are considering medicinal cannabis, it’s important to talk to your usual health-care provider, ideally one familiar with your full medical history, to help you decide the best approaches to help manage your pain.
Suzanne Nielsen receives funding from the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council, alongside government and philanthropic organisations to conduct independent research.. She is the president-elect for the Australasian Professional Society on Alcohol and Other Drugs. She serves as a consultant for the World Health Organization. She has contributed to independent reviews of the evidence on medical cannabis for government organisations include Worksafe and the TGA.
Myfanwy Graham receives funding from the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council, alongside government and university institutes. Myfanwy has served as a consultant for the UNODC, WHO and NASEM. She is an appointed member of the Therapeutic Goods Administration’s Medicinal Cannabis Expert Working Group. This article does not represent the views of the TGA or the Expert Working Group.
As Israel continues to pound Gaza with airstrikes, killing scores of people a day, the two-month ceasefire that brought a halt to the violence earlier this year feels like a distant memory.
Israel’s overall military and political objective in Gaza hasn’t changed after 19 months of war: it is still seeking the absolute defeat of Hamas and return of the remaining Israeli hostages.
But it is unclear how Hamas will ever be militarily defeated unless there is a complete and unconditional surrender and the laying down of all arms. This appears unlikely, despite the success of Israel’s so-called “decapitation strategy” targeting the Hamas leadership.
And Hamas continues to hold an estimated that 57 Israeli hostages in Gaza, of which up to 24 are believed to still be alive. The group is insisting on guarantees that Israel will end the war before releasing any more hostages.
An ongoing blockade for 18 years
With negotiations at a stalemate, Israel has not only maintained its blockade of Gaza, but strengthened it.
Israel first imposed a land, sea and air blockade of Gaza in 2007 after Hamas came to power. These restrictions have severely limited the movement of people and vehicles across the border, as well as the amount of food, medicine and other goods that have been permitted to go into and out of Gaza.
These controls increased significantly after Hamas’ attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023. They’ve been maintained at heightened levels ever since.
The January ceasefire temporarily increased the flow of food, medical aid and other support into Gaza. However, this came to an end in early March when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cut off aid again to pressure Hamas to extend the ceasefire and release more hostages. Hostilities resumed soon after.
The United Nations’ humanitarian efforts in Gaza have now come to a “near-standstill”. On May 13, Tom Fletcher, the UN emergency relief coordinator, addressed the UN Security Council, stating:
For more than 10 weeks, nothing has entered Gaza – no food, medicine, water or tents. […] Every single one of the 2.1 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip face the risk of famine. One in five faces starvation.
Israel denies there are food shortages in Gaza. It says it won’t permit any trucks to enter the strip until a new system is in place to prevent Hamas from siphoning supplies.
International law is clear
Both the 1949 Geneva Conventions and customary international law make clear:
The use of starvation of the civilian population as a method of warfare is prohibited.
Under international humanitarian law, Fletcher noted, Israel has the responsibility to ensure aid reaches people in territory it occupies. However, Israel’s method of distributing aid, he said, “makes aid conditional on political and military aims” and “makes starvation a bargaining chip”.
What have the courts found?
International courts have not ignored Israel’s obligations on this front.
In relation Netanyahu and Gallant, the ICC’s pre-trial chamber found:
there are reasonable grounds to believe that both individuals intentionally and knowingly deprived the civilian population in Gaza of objects indispensable to their survival, including food, water, and medicine and medical supplies.
As Israel is not a party to the Rome Statute, there is no obligation on the government to act on the arrest warrants. Both men remain free to travel as long as they do not enter the territory of a Rome Statute party. (Even then, their arrest is not guaranteed.)
The ICC warrants will remain in effect unless withdrawn by the court. The arrest in March of former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte highlighted that while ICC investigations may take time, those accused of crimes can eventually be brought before the court to face justice.
This is especially so if there is a change in political leadership in a country that allows an arrest to go ahead.
The case began with high-profile hearings last year when the court issued provisional measures, or orders, requiring Israel to refrain from engaging in any genocidal acts.
The most recent of those orders, issued last May, called on Israel to immediately halt its offensive in Rafah (in southern Gaza) and maintain the opening of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt to allow “unhindered provision at scale of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance”.
These orders remain in effect. Yet, Rafah today is a “no-go zone” that Gazans have been ordered to evacuate. And Israel’s ongoing blockade of the strip and restrictions on aid and food entering the territory are clearly in defiance of the court.
Late last month, the ICJ began hearings to form an opinion on Israel’s duties to allow aid to enter Gaza. Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Saar, criticised the ICJ’s hearings as “another attempt to politicise and abuse the legal process in order to persecute Israel”.
The court’s advisory opinion on this issue is not expected for several months. A final decision on South Africa’s broader case may take years.
So, what can be done?
Reflecting on the situation in Gaza, Fletcher observed at the UN:
This degradation of international law is corrosive and infectious. It is undermining decades of progress on rules to protect civilians from inhumanity and the violent and lawless among us who act with impunity. Humanity, the law and reason must prevail.
Yet, while the Security Council continues to have the situation in Gaza under review, it has proven incapable of acting decisively because of US support for Israel.
The Biden Administration was prepared to use its veto power to block binding Security Council resolutions forcing Israel to respond to the humanitarian crisis. The Trump Administration would no doubt do the same.
However, as Duterte’s arrest shows, international law sometimes does result in action. The finding by another UN body last week that Russia was responsible for the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014 is another case in point.
As the Dutch foreign minister pointed out in that case, the finding sends a message that “states cannot violate international law with impunity”.
Donald Rothwell receives funding from Australian Research Council
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
KHARTOUM, May 18 (Xinhua) — At least 14 civilians were killed Sunday in El Fasher, capital of western Sudan’s North Darfur state, after artillery strikes by the paramilitary Rapid Reaction Force (RRF), local volunteer groups said.
“14 civilians were killed today as a result of artillery shelling by the RSF,” the Coordination Group of Resistance Committees in El Fasher said in a statement.
It is noted that the targets of the shelling were the Naivasha market in the Abu Shouk camp for displaced persons and several neighborhoods in the northern part of El Fasher.
The Abu Shouk camp emergency department confirmed in a statement that 14 people were killed in the artillery shelling carried out by the RSF.
“The scale of losses is significant, due to the security situation we cannot yet establish the total number of dead and wounded,” the medical service said.
Meanwhile, the volunteer NGO Sudanese Doctors Network reported that 19 people were killed and 28 others were injured in “deliberate shelling” by the SRF on city neighbourhoods and the Abu Shouk camp for displaced persons in El Fasher.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Tbilisi, May 18 (Xinhua) — China is an important strategic market for Georgian wine, where a marketing campaign is being actively carried out to increase awareness and expand exports of Georgian wines, the Georgian National Wine Agency said on Sunday.
According to the organization, 1.12 million liters of Georgian wine were exported from Georgia to China in January-April of this year, which is 78 percent more than in the same period last year. “Thus, China has firmly taken its place among the top five largest countries exporting Georgian wine,” the agency noted.
With the financial and organizational support of the National Wine Agency, in 2025 Georgian wines will be actively represented in such strategic markets as China, the USA, Great Britain, Germany, Poland, the Republic of Korea and Japan.
In 2024, Georgia exported 95 million liters of wine and spirits to 72 countries worldwide for a total of about $565 million. –0–
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congressman Don Davis (NC-01)voted in favor of three bills to enhance public safety and improve law enforcement well-being during National Police Week.
On Wednesday, May 14, Congressman Don Davis voted yes on H.R. 2240, theImproving Law Enforcement Officer Safety and Wellness Through Data Act.Davis, a cosponsor of the legislation, said the bill is a step forward in protecting law enforcement officers. The bill aims to improve how attacks on officers are tracked and reported. It allows more detailed information to be voluntarily shared, such as whether an attack was planned or coordinated. It also directs the U.S. Department of Justice to consider adding “escalatory aggression” to its reports and to review how often officers use available mental health resources.
“Our law enforcement officers put their lives on the line every day to protect our communities, and they deserve our support,” said Congressman Don Davis. “Congress must ensure that these officers have the necessary tools and resources to effectively serve and protect the communities they are sworn to uphold.”
By improving data collection, we can develop more effective strategies to protect those who serve and better address their mental health needs.”
On Thursday, May 15, Congressman Davis voted in favor of H.R. 2243, the LEOSA Reform Act. The bipartisan legislation expands where qualified active and retired law enforcement officers can securely carry firearms to respond during emergencies.
Congressman Davis also voted for H.R. 2255, the Federal Law Enforcement Officer Service Weapon Purchase Act of 2025. The bill allows federal law enforcement officers to buy back their retired service weapons at salvage value. Currently, federal agencies are required to destroy these firearms which costs taxpayers money.
“These bills are a step in the right direction,” said Congressman Davis.“They not only protect officers on the job but also honor their service after retirement.”
All three bills now move to the Senate for consideration.
A second man has been arrested in connection with a series of arson attacks in north London.
The 26-year-old was arrested around 13:45hrs on Saturday, 17 May at London Luton Airport on suspicion of conspiracy to commit arson with intent to endanger life.
The arrest was made by counter terrorism officers from the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit. The man was taken into police custody in London.
On Sunday, 18 May, a warrant of further detention was obtained at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, meaning the man can be detained for an additional 36 hours.
The arrest relates to three incidents – a vehicle fire in NW5 on 8 May, a fire at the entrance of a property in N7 on 11 May and a fire at a residential address in NW5 in the early hours of 12 May.
All have previous connections with a high-profile public figure, and therefore officers from the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command have led the investigation into the fires.
Anyone with information that could assist the investigation should call police on 101 quoting CAD 441/12 May.
We would ask the public to remain vigilant and if they see or hear anything that doesn’t look or feel right, then to report it to police – either by calling police, in confidence, on 0800 789 321 or via www.gov.uk/ACT
+ A 21-year-old man has already been charged with three counts of arson with intent to endanger life and appeared in court.
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, May 18 (Xinhua) — The number of visits to China’s museums last year exceeded 1.4 billion, hitting a new all-time high, according to the National Cultural Heritage Administration, demonstrating that the role of museums in Chinese people’s cultural life continues to grow day by day.
On International Museum Day, celebrated on May 18, museums across China offer various special programs, allowing visitors to immerse themselves in the charm of cultural heritage.
The theme of this year’s event is “The Future of Museums in Rapidly Changing Communities.” Driven by technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), big data, and virtual reality (VR), the world’s museums are undergoing a profound digital transformation that is not only changing the visitor experience but also reshaping the way museums operate.
As noted in the 2024 report of the International Council of Museums /ICOM/, more than 78 percent of museums in the world have included AI technologies in their development programs, with the main scenarios for the application of such technologies being the digitalization of cultural resources and “smart” excursion systems.
A striking example in this regard is the Shanxi Museum. There are three UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Shanxi Province /Northern China/, and the museum’s collection includes more than 650,000 items and sets of cultural relics.
Using high-precision 3D scanning to preserve and virtually restore details of archaeological artifacts, the Shanxi Museum has created a digital archive of more than 200,000 cultural relics. This multimodal database, containing graphics, texts, images, and spectral analysis, is open to archaeological research institutions to support interdisciplinary research.
Digital technologies such as VR and augmented reality (AR) help visitors have an immersive experience. When scanning a bronze tripod in the museum with a mobile phone, the process of casting similar items in the Jin Kingdom during the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046-771 BC) immediately appears on the display.
At another exhibition at the museum, 500,000 people who visited the exhibition online were able to use a VR-enabled device to interact with figures on a mural dating back to the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534) and take part in a virtual archaeological excavation.
Technological innovations have restructured the channels of dialogue between the public and cultural heritage. The conductor of this process is not only the impressions of a particular exhibition, but also the physical creative products of the cultural industry.
More and more people in China, especially young people, want to have a valuable experience when visiting a museum, so the demand for cultural products related to the museum and its exhibits continues to grow.
A rare fridge magnet developed by the National Museum of China (NMC) in Beijing became a best-selling item last year thanks to its exquisite craftsmanship. The miniature souvenir delicately features the phoenix crown of an empress of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), which is in the museum’s collection. In the six months since its launch in July 2024, 800,000 copies have been sold, pushing NMC’s total sales of cultural products in the second half of last year to 10 million yuan (approximately US$1.39 million).
In addition to the usual wooden fridge magnet, the developers also created an AR version. After scanning, a virtual image of the crown appears on the top of the person’s head, as if he or she were wearing it.
It is noteworthy that many buyers take pictures with the scarce magnet and publish the photos on social networks, which arouses the interest of other people directly to the cultural relic itself, in front of which visitors even have to stand in long lines in order to admire it.
The magnet craze has inspired designers to create new products, including notepads, makeup mirrors, badges and even ice cream sticks, demonstrating that elements of traditional culture have found their way into modern life in innovative ways.
According to the Beijing city authorities, the first museum season will be held in the Chinese capital from this year’s International Museum Day until October 8, and July will be dedicated to creative products of the cultural industry.
The city then plans to hold various events, such as competitions and fairs of creative products of the cultural industry, campaigns to stimulate the consumption of such goods, etc. Such steps, according to experts, will contribute to the dissemination and development of culture.
Technological advances are giving museums the opportunity to enhance public engagement and experience and improve operational efficiency, analysts say.
They expressed their hope that museums would play a unique role in promoting social inclusion, stimulating cultural vitality and promoting sustainable development through technological innovation, youth participation and social interaction. -0-
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
TIANJIN, May 18 (Xinhua) — The all-new Toyota bZ5 smart electric powertrain rolled off the assembly line at FAW Toyota Motor Co., Ltd.’s plant in the north Chinese port city of Tianjin on Friday, marking the model’s official debut in the Chinese market.
The car also marks a major milestone as it became the 12 millionth unit produced by the company, a joint venture between Toyota Motor Corporation and leading Chinese automaker First Automotive Works (FAW) Group Co.
The bZ5 features a panoramic sunroof and a 15.6-inch full-HD touchscreen. It comes with the new Toyota Pilot intelligent driving assistance system, which supports more than 30 functions, including navigation assistance for city and highway driving, and automatic parking.
China is a leader in intelligent and electric vehicles. If Toyota products can win the favor of Chinese consumers, they will certainly be well received in global markets, said Koji Sato, president and CEO of Toyota.
As of April 2025, Toyota’s Tianjin plant had produced 258,000 vehicles, with a total output value of 54 billion yuan (about $7.5 billion). From January to April this year, the plant produced 35,900 units, up 34 percent year-on-year.
The debut of the new model highlights the growing importance of the Chinese market as a hub for global production, sales and innovation for the Japanese automaker.
In late April, the Japanese company signed an agreement with the Shanghai municipal government to establish a wholly owned electric vehicle manufacturing plant in Shanghai.
Under the strategic cooperation agreement, Toyota will invest a total of 14.6 billion yuan in the new energy vehicle project in Jinshan District, which will focus on the research and development, production and sales of Lexus EV vehicles and EV batteries. -0-
Source: American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Union
WASHINGTON – AFSCME President Lee Saunders released the following statement recognizing National EMS Week, which is happening May 18-24:
“Every day, we are grateful for the selfless heroes who choose careers in EMS, including many AFSCME members. No matter the situation, these highly trained professionals never quit when it comes to saving lives — even if it means putting themselves in harm’s way. We must remember to never take their service or sacrifice for granted.
“While we celebrate these essential workers, anti-union extremists in Congress are racing to gut Medicaid — which would devastate emergency services. Less funding for this lifesaving program would make it more difficult for EMS workers to help us when we’re in crisis. Medicaid cuts would shutter hospitals and clinics, force ambulances to travel farther, delay care and overwhelm an already stretched EMS workforce with fewer staff, less equipment and longer response times. That’s why we’re getting organized to defend public services and our jobs.
“This EMS Week, we’re standing up for the care we depend on and the first responders who deliver it. We won’t allow Congress to put billionaires ahead of our communities.”
ROME, May 18, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — In an economy where memecoins often rise and fall within the same week, POPEcoin ($POPE) has managed to carve out a real foothold—raising $1.5 million in just ten days, without venture capital, early access allocations, or flashy partnerships. The entire presale has been structured for fairness and simplicity, with equal terms for every participant and a clean 0% tax on all buys and sells. That approach seems to be resonating. The project has already drawn over 25,000 organic followers across Twitter and Telegram, with round after round of the presale filling up faster than anticipated.
But beyond the numbers, POPEcoin is tapping into something rare: a memecoin with a narrative arc. Inspired by the 1809 imprisonment of Pope Pius VII under Napoleon, the token weaves historical symbolism with meme culture, bringing together two worlds that rarely meet. Its slogan, “History Never Dies,” is more than a tagline—it’s the core of the project’s identity. Every aspect of the launch, from the 1809% staking APR to the relic-themed NFT series in development, is a nod to a forgotten moment of defiance being preserved through blockchain.
From Meme to Mechanism: Building Infrastructure on Bitcoin
The team behind POPEcoin isn’t stopping at memes—they’re setting the foundation for a narrative-fueled Layer 2.
As the presale continues through its 23 planned rounds, with each tier incrementally increasing in price, the next stage of development is already underway. POPEcoin has announced plans for POPEchain—a Bitcoin Layer 2 infrastructure dedicated to supporting on-chain storytelling, decentralized culture, and community-driven engagement. The alpha testnet is scheduled for release post-presale, with early backers given priority access.
Token buyers receive their $POPE instantly upon purchase, with tokens automatically staked to start earning rewards immediately. A dedicated staking dApp will launch following the presale, offering users an intuitive way to claim both their tokens and their earned yield. Parallel to this, the development team is building a native bridge to enable seamless asset movement across Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, Solana, and Base.
Further anchoring its cultural mission, POPEcoin is also preparing the launch of NFT Relics—a series of digital artifacts that fuse historical lore with on-chain identity. Plans for a gamified experience dubbed VaticanVerse are also in motion, offering an immersive metaverse-like extension of the token’s historical themes.
A Cultural Token with Momentum to Match
The rise of POPEcoin signals that the memecoin space may finally be ready for substance—without sacrificing speed.
There’s no shortage of tokens with hype, nor of projects with grand ambitions but little traction. What separates POPEcoin is that it’s executing fast, communicating clearly, and drawing real interest without relying on artificial volume or preloaded influencers. The combination of community-driven funding, historical narrative, and infrastructure ambition is proving potent—especially in a market hungry for novelty that actually delivers.
Presale contributions remain open, though rounds are filling quickly. As the project transitions from fundraising to infrastructure rollout, the early days of POPEcoin already read like a memecoin that didn’t follow the script—and that’s exactly why it’s working.
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The Czech National Bank is celebrating a major success in the area of employee care. In this year’s Pluxee Employer of the Region – Capital City Prague ranking, CNB placed second in the category for organizations with up to 5,000 employees. The result confirms that the CNB is among the top employers in Prague. The award is part of the Employers’ Club Annual Awards 2025, one of the most prestigious recognitions on the Czech labor market.
The awards ceremony took place on May 12. On behalf of the CNB, the recognition was accepted by Helena Dybová, Deputy Director of the Administration Department and acting Head of Human Resources. The CNB takes home a well-deserved award that reflects the bank’s long-standing commitment to high-quality working conditions, employee care, continuous improvement of the work environment, and corporate social responsibility.
Employers are evaluated using the globally recognized Saratoga methodology, overseen by PricewaterhouseCoopers Czech Republic. This method compares employers first within their sectors, ensuring that the final scores reflect the true quality of employee policy and the work environment. Companies are assessed across 14 indicators in three areas. These include data on training, employee benefits, staff turnover, corporate social responsibility, and financials.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, May 18 — The total output value of China’s satellite navigation and positioning service industry reached 575.8 billion yuan (about 79.9 billion U.S. dollars) in 2024, up 7.39 percent year on year, according to a white paper published Sunday.
This year’s white paper on the development of China’s satellite navigation and positioning service industry noted that by the end of 2024 the cumulative number of satellite navigation patent applications in China had exceeded 129,000 and approximately 288 million mobile phones in the country were equipped with positioning capabilities enabled by the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS).
In 2024, the core output value of chips, algorithms and terminal devices, directly related to China’s satellite navigation and location-based service industry, went up to 169.9 billion yuan, said Yu Xiancheng, president of the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and Location Based Services (LBS) Association of China (GLAC).
The BDS has achieved high-precision lane-level navigation, covering more than 99 percent of urban and rural roads across the country. It provides over 1 trillion location services daily and supports a total daily navigation mileage of over 4 billion kilometers.
Additionally, the BDS empowers road tests for intelligent connected vehicles and ensures the application of intelligent assisted driving in more than 50 cities nationwide.
“The BDS not only meets domestic demands, but also enables people all over the world to enjoy high-quality public navigation services from China,” said Li Donghang, head of the GLAC Beidou-Space Time Technology Research Institute. The BDS products and services have been exported to over 140 countries and regions.
As a core supplier of global satellite navigation systems recognized by the United Nations, the BDS has been fully integrated into the standards of 11 international organizations, including civil aviation, maritime affairs and mobile communications.
More than 30 African countries, including Nigeria, Tunisia, Senegal, Cameroon, and Djibouti, have established BeiDou Continuously Operating Reference Stations (CORS), providing high-precision positioning services for local water conservancy, transportation, agriculture, and meteorological monitoring.
In South America, the Chancay Port in Peru is the first smart port to apply the “5G + BeiDou high-precision positioning + AI” technology.
Almost 22 years ago, the United Nations family suffered the worst terrorist attack in the history of our organization.
22 years is a long time.
But we will never forget the colleagues who were killed that day in the bombing at the Canal Hotel.
They were sons, daughters, mothers, fathers and friends who are, to this day, mourned by those they knew and loved.
We will always remember their leader, Sergio Vieira de Mello, who was also killed in the attack.
We will stand with the survivors whose lives were changed forever.
And we will remember the courageous colleagues and others who rushed to help on that terrible day, and in the days and weeks after — showing us the very best of the humanitarian spirit.
This memorial stands as a tribute to their lives and their contributions to the people of Iraq.
It also stands as a reminder of how far Iraq has come since 2003.
Working with the brave and resilient people of this country, the women and men of the United Nations have worked tirelessly to support their quest for stability, development and peace.
Above all, this memorial is as a clear reminder of the vital work that our organization does around the world — and the dangers our people face in carrying out that work.
With World Humanitarian Day, the date of 19 August has been forever transformed from a day of unimaginable horror and tragedy here in Iraq into a global day of solemn remembrance for all humanitarians — inside and outside the organization.
Their bravery, dedication, and belief that a better future is possible will always inspire us.
And like those whose lives were lost on 19 August, 2003, their sacrifices and contributions to our world — and to our vital cause of peace — will never be forgotten.
Today, the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, issued the following statement to mark Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day:
“Today marks 16 years since the end of the armed conflict in Sri Lanka – a conflict that spanned over 26 years and killed tens of thousands of civilians.
“On this Tamil Genocide Remembrance Day, we remember the lives lost – the families torn apart, the communities devastated, and those who remain missing to this day. We also think of Canada’s Tamil community, who carry with them the memory of loved ones, and the many remembrance services planned across Canada.
“Canada continues to support independent international efforts to seek accountability and push for truth and justice.
“As we mark this solemn anniversary, let it strengthen our resolve to act in tribute, with courage, and for lasting peace.”
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, May 18 (Xinhua) — China’s Tianwen-2 probe is scheduled to launch in late May, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said Sunday.
The probe was delivered to the launch pad area after completing scheduled assembly, testing and fueling at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center’s technical area in southwest China’s Sichuan Province.
Further, functional checks and joint tests will be carried out in accordance with the plan.
The Long March-3B Y110 carrier rocket, which will carry out the Tianwen-2 launch mission, was previously moved from the technical area to the launch pad area on May 14, where lifting and docking operations were completed, according to CNSA. -0-
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, May 18 (Xinhua) — A freight train carrying 110 containers of auto parts departed from the Xingangbei railway station of the port city of Tianjin (north China) on Thursday. The train will cross the state border at the Khorgos checkpoint in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (northwest China) and arrive in Uzbekistan, the Tianjin Daily newspaper reported.
According to statistics, in the first four months of 2025, the number of freight train departures on China-Europe/China-Central Asia international freight routes from Tianjin Port was 241. The trains carried 26,000 standard containers of cargo, up 1.9 percent year-on-year.
Since the beginning of this year, under the supervision of the customs service, Tianjin Port has handled a total of 14 trains to Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries in the mode of multimodal rail-sea transportation, which transported 1,546 TEU of cargo. In April alone, 10 such trains were dispatched, transporting 1,108 TEU of goods.
According to Wang Huan, general manager of a local company engaged in transportation by China-Europe /China-Central Asia/ freight trains, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and other Central Asian countries have always been an important direction for the company to expand its business. This year, the number of freight trains heading to Central Asian countries will be increased, and the aspect of mixed freight transportation by sea and rail will be further developed. -0-
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
ULAN BATOR, May 18 (Xinhua) — Mongolia has imported 49,607 passenger cars from abroad since the beginning of 2025, up 6.7 percent year-on-year, local media reported Sunday, citing data from the country’s General Administration of Customs.
During the specified period, imports of trucks decreased by 5.2 percent, amounting to 9,790 units, the official report says.
Today, passenger cars are mainly imported from the Republic of Korea, Japan and the United States, and trucks from China.
According to the Mongolian Traffic Police Department, more than 800,000 vehicles are currently participating in traffic in Ulaanbaatar. –0–
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, May 18 (Xinhua) — “Your documentary ‘My Moscow Encounters’ faithfully portrayed modern Russia and our war heritage. I was so touched! Both my grandfathers were war veterans, and both my grandmothers survived the siege of Leningrad,” a message from Anna Belkina, head of the PR department of RT TV channel (Russia Today), transported correspondents from sunny and clear Beijing back in time to recent spring days on Moscow’s Red Square.
On May 15 and 16, RT aired the Xinhua News Agency documentary “My Moscow Meetings” in prime time on two consecutive evenings, which received a wide response from Russian viewers.
“This is a film showing China’s view of the Great Patriotic War and World War II. The sacrifices that people made to achieve Victory were enormous,” Ekaterina Yakovleva, head of the RT.Doc television channel, wrote in a message to correspondents. “We must preserve this memory and prevent distortion of the historical truth.”
Ahead of the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War, Xinhua correspondents in Moscow talked with old and new friends about the memory of World War II, the meaning of peace and hopes for the future. The conversations give a clear sense of the overlapping memories of the peoples of China and Russia and their common aspiration for common development.
MEMORY OF THE PAST IS A TRIBUTE OF RESPECT TO ANCESTORS
“Each link in these chains symbolizes ten lives. That is, 26 million Soviet people who died in World War II,” RT chief producer Dmitry Leontyev looks up at the chains hanging from the ceiling and explains their meaning in the “Faces of Victory” hall of the Victory Museum in Moscow.
The museum was opened in 1995 — on the 50th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War and the World Anti-Fascist War. D. Leontyev says that in every family someone fought. And today, every Russian can bring a photograph to the museum or write a text about their relatives to preserve their memory forever. Among the more than a million photographs collected is a picture of the father of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“For Russians, May 9 is the most important secular holiday of the year. After all, if we had not won that war, Russia simply would not exist,” says D. Leontyev. “Preserving the history of that war is a tribute to the sacrifices that my ancestors made and thanks to which I can now sit here and talk to you.”
“Of all the other countries, only China can understand this. Because for them, too, it was a war for survival… Our two countries suffered the most, lost the most people in World War II. And not only soldiers died, but also women, children, and old people. They suffered from terrible hunger, from the atrocities that the Japanese and German armies committed in China and in Russia, then the Soviet Union. And if you remember the Chinese soldiers who fought in the ranks of the Soviet army, and the Soviet soldiers who fought and risked their lives for China, then I think it would be impossible to imagine a stronger bond between the countries,” he adds.
“THE DISASTER OF 80 YEARS AGO MUST NOT BE REPEATED”
In March 2013, Chinese President Xi Jinping gave an important speech at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) of the Russian Foreign Ministry, noting that in the present world, the interconnectedness and interdependence of all countries has reached an unprecedentedly high level. “All of us, people, live in one global village, in one time and space at the intersection of history and reality. More and more, we are becoming a community of a common destiny, in which I am in you, and you are in me,” he said.
“It was a historic moment,” said Alexander Bobrov, associate professor of diplomacy at MGIMO. He led journalists to the MGIMO conference hall building where Chinese President Xi Jinping gave his speech 12 years ago.
A. Bobrov said that he was a second-year university student that year, and his own mentality was strongly oriented toward the West.
“After the speech of Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013, I studied many books about China and Eurasia and radically changed my perception of the world,” he noted.
A. Bobrov believes that the concept of building a community with a common destiny for humanity, proposed by Xi Jinping, “influenced the worldview of many national leaders.” “I think that Chairman Xi Jinping’s speech changed the perception of the world in which we live,” A. Bobrov adds.
On the building of the university conference hall there is a huge red banner with the inscription in white letters. “Happy Great Victory Day. 1945-2025,” he translates the inscription.
Speaking about the military parade in honor of Victory Day, which took place on May 9, A. Bobrov notes: “The point is not to boast about what kind of army we have or to demonstrate military valor, the point is that what happened 80 years ago should not happen again. It is about preserving the common past for the sake of a bright future for our peoples.”
According to him, some Western countries, trying to present this event as Russia-oriented, “are making a big mistake, because this is not about Russia, but about our common Victory.”
“THE SUPPORT OF PEACE, STABILITY AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE WHOLE WORLD”
“This order belonged to my father-in-law. In 1941, he voluntarily went to the front and was seriously wounded in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg),” says Yuri Tavrovsky, a professor at the Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia. In his home, a Xinhua correspondent saw not only the order of the Soviet veteran, but also books by Yuri Tavrovsky himself about China.
As one of Russia’s leading sinologists, Yuri Tavrovsky is deeply familiar with Chinese culture, concepts and initiatives.
Yury Tavrovsky believes that Russia and China’s joint celebration of the victory in World War II demonstrates “their own vision of history based on facts.” In his opinion, Russian-Chinese relations embody the principle of Chinese philosophy “he er bu tong” /unity while preserving diversity/.
“A new period is now emerging, thanks to a different type of relationship between Russia and China,” he says, adding that Russia and China will become “the pillar of peace, stability and development throughout the world.”
Any attempt “to divide us, to create discord between Russia and China are doomed to failure,” he says. “Russia and China not only marched together on /Red/ Square, they will help each other in difficult times.”
Speaking about his expectations for the future, Yuri Tavrovsky notes that the most important thing is to eradicate wars. “Peace, trade and exchange between civilizations are the main tasks of the 21st century,” he says. –0–
A murder investigation is under way following the fatal stabbing of a man in Kingsbury, North West London.
Police were called to reports of an altercation in Kingsbury Road, NW9 at 03:31hrs on Sunday, 18 May. A 26-year-old man was later confirmed to have been taken to hospital with a stab wound. Shortly after, despite the best efforts of medical staff, he was sadly pronounced dead.
His next of kin have been informed and are being supported by specially trained officers.
Formal identification and a post-mortem examination will take place in due course.
Detective Chief Inspector Allam Bhangoo, who is leading the investigation, said:
“Our team of detectives and forensic specialists are working at pace to establish the full circumstances that led to the tragic death of a young man.”
“We understand this incident will cause concern within the Kingsbury community, and we’re grateful for their continued patience and co-operation. Residents can expect to see an increased police presence in the area, along with a crime scene, as we carry out the early stages of our investigation.
“We urge anyone who witnessed the incident, or who has any information that could assist us, to come forward as soon as possible.”
Anyone who can help is asked to call police on 101, quoting reference: 1052/18May. Information can also be provided anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Kinsgsbury Road, between Uphill Drive and Church Lane, remains closed at this stage. Please avoid the area where possible.
