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Don’t inject fresh money into the European Union – only reform national policies, says Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

It’s the best way to prevent EU industry from being wiped out by US companies under Washington’s big new green subsidy program, Rutte told a group of journalists at the office of the Dutch embassy to the EU in Brussels on Tuesday.

“There is so much money in the system at the moment,” Rutte said shortly after a meeting with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo. He also called for deeper reforms, stressing that some European countries are spending so much on their pension systems – “all the money you can’t spend on innovation and green technology”.

Rutte is often seen as the key leader of the so-called “frugal” group of European countries, made up of like-minded, fiscally conservative nations. The group, which also includes Denmark and Sweden, was reluctant to increase national contributions to the EU coffers – at least until the coronavirus pandemic forced them to partially adjust that line.

Discussion among EU policymakers on how to preserve the bloc’s industrial base comes ahead of a meeting of EU leaders next month as the US introduces a $369 billion industrial subsidy program to boost green industries under the so-called inflation support reduction law.

The US legislation has fueled fears about the impact on European industry and prompted calls for a review of state aid rules. Another concern is that such subsidies jeopardize the EU’s internal market by conferring an outsized advantage on countries with greater fiscal power, such as Germany, that have more fiscal leeway.

Rutte, who was recently in Washington to visit US President Joe Biden, said: “This Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has a number of consequences – but unintended ones.” The IRA “is forcing us to think about how we organize ‘ to stay competitive, he added.

On the one hand, he sees the efforts of the USA to achieve the climate goals as a positive development. On the other hand, he pointed out the risks for a level playing field such as with electromobility. “Companies could shift investment from the EU to the US,” he said, echoing a much-repeated fear.

But EU subsidies should remain unchanged, Rutte argued. Regarding calls for an adjustment to the IRA by changing the EU state aid rules, he admitted: “I can accept some changes as long as they are limited.”

Rutte was clear that no new EU money should be put on the table. “I mean, no grants, but no loans either,” he said. “There is still so much left” – for example loans in the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the heart of the EU recovery plan for the pandemic.

A draft text, which leaders plan to agree on at their forthcoming European Council, hints at new sources of EU funding. The draft, seen by POLITICO, calls for “moving the work forward, particularly building on the success of the SURE programme,” referring to the EU’s loan-based employment support program created by Rome and others would.

Rutte stressed that he does not want to see this proposal in the text, which will be discussed by EU ambassadors on Wednesday.

When asked if he was in favor of a new SURE program, “I would say we have serious doubts,” he said.

Barbara Moens contributed to the reporting.

Laura Richardson, a general who serves as head of the United States Southern Command, stirs controversy among left-wing leaders after asking: “Why is this region (Latin America) important?” and reply that this is partly due to the wealth of natural resources such as lithium and the proximity to their country.

In a presentation by the Atlantic Council, a US think tank, the decorated commander emphasized that it is about being good neighbors of American countries where there are nations with which the US works on a daily basis. Although there are also countries like Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua that are allies of Russia.

In the approximately one-hour conversation, the General also addressed the importance of the region in terms of its natural resources.

“Why is this region important? With all of their rich resources and rare earth elements, you have the lithium triangle necessary for today’s technology. 60 percent of the world’s lithium is in the Lithium Triangle: Argentina, Bolivia and Chile,” Ricardson said.

“They have the largest oil reserves, light sweet crude oil discovered in Guyana over a year ago. They also have Venezuela’s resources in oil, copper and gold,” he added.

He further noted that China gets 36 percent of its food resources from the regionand that 31 percent of the world’s fresh water is found in this area, and in part for these reasons, it is an area related to United States national security.

On these statements the former President of Bolivia Evo Morales said Latin America is not the backyard of the United States.

“We remind the head of the US Southern Command, Laura Richardson, that Latin America is not her backyard or her farm to exploit natural resources. Faced with the new threat of intervention by the Yankees, we reiterate that the free peoples of the Great Fatherland will defend their sovereignty,” he mentioned on his social networks.

The United States has asked Latin American countries to donate weapons purchased from Russia to Ukraine

In the same conversation that took place last Thursday, the general stated this The United States has asked various countries in the region to donate the military equipment it has bought from Russia. and in their place they will be given American arms.

“Russia has allies in Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua, but six other countries, nine in total, have Russian military equipment. We are working with them to replace Russian equipment with American military equipment if they donate it to Ukraine,” he told Richardson at an Atlantic Council think-tank meeting.

The countries that bought Russian weapons are: Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Peru and Venezuelaaccording to the American Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS, for its English acronym).

Russian tanks. Credits: EFE

Who is General Laura Richardson?

General Laura Richardson, Chief of the United States Southern Command, is a decorated general with extensive experience in the United States Army.

Her positions include serving as Military Assistant to the US Vice President at the White House and as Army Campaign Planner at the Pentagon.

Richardson’s awards include five Meritorious Service Medals, four Legions of Merit, and two Army Distinguished Service Medals. _With information from EFE

The Czech Republic does not want to give up the Leopard 2 main battle tanks in favor of Ukraine, which Germany promised during an exchange of rings. “Now it is not possible to send the Leopards because we need these tanks for our security,” Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said in an interview with the German Press Agency on Tuesday after a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin. .

The Czech Republic made dozens of Soviet-designed T-72 main battle tanks available to Ukraine last year. The German government promised the government in Prague 14 Leopard 2 tanks and an armored recovery vehicle as part of the so-called exchange of rings. The first Leopard was delivered last December.

This exchange of rings is a “very good example of European cooperation”, said Fiala. He expects the other 13 Leopard 2 tanks promised by Germany to be delivered later this year.

In addition to the Czech Republic, Slovakia will also receive 15 Leopard 2 tanks during a ring swap from German armaments manufacturer Rheinmetall. So a total of 29 tanks are going to these two countries. According to Rheinmetall boss Armin Papperger, the repair should be completed by the end of March. “These tanks belong to the federal government. They can do whatever they want with them,” Papperger told Stern.

(Ottawa) The Canadian military, after weighing the probabilities, has concluded that Maj. Gen. Dany Fortin “did not commit sexual misconduct” after the officer was acquitted of sexual assault charges in December.

Updated January 23rd

Marie-Danielle Smith The Canadian Press

A spokesman for the Canadian Armed Forces said Monday that a review process had resulted in no administrative action and that an administrative review was not required in this case.

Daniel Le Bouthillier writes that Mr Fortin will be given “duties commensurate with his rank and experience” without giving a timetable. “We are aware that it has been a long and difficult process for everyone involved in this case,” adds Mr Le Bouthillier.

Judge Richard Meredith of the Quebec General Court ruled last month that the crown had failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that it was Mr Fortin who sexually assaulted a fellow officer at the Military College of Saint-Jean in 1988.

Quebec’s director of law and prosecution confirmed earlier this month that he would not appeal Mr Fortin’s acquittal. In a written statement to The Canadian Press, the DPCP said the decision had been communicated to the victim.

The DPCP also wished to highlight “the courage and resilience” shown by the applicant throughout the court proceedings.

Judge Meredith had insisted that he was satisfied that the applicant had indeed been sexually assaulted that evening. But he felt the Crown had not established beyond a reasonable doubt that it was the accused Fortin who had committed the crime.

Mr Fortin ‘looks forward to the service’

In a statement sent to The Canadian Press on Monday, Maj. Gen. Fortin said he “looks forward to serving Canadians” in a position befitting his rank and experience. But he adds that his current mission “certainly doesn’t fit that definition.”

When the allegation broke, Maj. Gen. Fortin was responsible for the federal distribution of COVID-19 vaccines to provinces. He had been placed on paid leave in May 2021 while the allegation was being investigated.

Prior to his mandate in the National Vaccination Operation, Mr. Fortin was Commander of the NATO Training Mission in Iraq and Commander of the 1st Canadian Division.

Mr Le Bouthillier pointed out that since the allegations surfaced, the Major General had continued to be paid by the Canadian Armed Forces. Mr. Fortin has served as Senior Advisor to the Commander of Canadian Joint Operations Command since August 2021.

Mr Fortin said on Monday that he intends to continue fighting his “unfair dismissal” and “lack of due process” in his case in federal appeals court. The government has dismissed Mr Fortin’s claims that he was sacked after political interference from Ottawa.

Mr Fortin explained that he had also lodged a formal complaint with the Military Police Complaints Commission about the way his file had been handled by that police unit. He claims his problem is still not solved.

“Tough in his career”

In an interview with The Canadian Press last month, his attorney, Natalia Rodriguez, raised the possibility of another lawsuit or an out-of-court settlement in the case. She had described the ordeal Mr Fortin endured as a “very hard blow to his career”.

Mr Rodriguez argued that his client had essentially been left in limbo for 18 months, limiting his ability to work and be transported before reaching the mandatory retirement age of 55 next summer.

Retired Colonel Michel Drapeau, who is now a lawyer specializing in military affairs, estimated last month that an acquittal should result in Mr Fortin’s immediate transfer to new duties.

“There is no legal or administrative reason not to do this,” Mr. Drapeau said in an interview with The Canadian Press.

A guide for 2020

The Army concludes on Monday that Mr Fortin did not commit any wrongdoing after requiring a review required by a policy introduced in late 2020 amid ongoing concerns about the Army’s stamping out of sexual assault.

This “Defense Administration Order and Policy” states that even if a soldier is acquitted of a charge, the armed forces still have an obligation to review the facts of the case “to determine whether there is reliable evidence that would place him in a charge.” Weighing of the probabilities demonstrate that sexual misconduct has occurred”.

The policy further emphasizes that a finding of guilt is not required to recommend release or impose other administrative measures.

In the case of Major General Fortin, the conclusion was reached “after a review of the available information, including the decision” by the Quebec Court, Mr Le Bouthillier wrote.

Extraordinary moment: A crocodile carries the unharmed body of a four-year-old boy to rescuers a mile from where he drowned in an Indonesian river

• Muhammad Ziyad Wijaya, 4, went missing in East Kalimantan two days earlier
• A 10-foot crocodile swam almost 700 feet carrying the boy’s body on its back
• The reptile dropped Muhammad off at a boat on the Mahakam River in Borneo

By Eleanor Dye

Published: 20:30 GMT, 24 January 2023 | Updated: 09:45 GMT, 25 January 2023

This is the extraordinary moment when a crocodile carries the unharmed body of a four-year-old boy to rescue workers a mile from where he drowned in a river in Indonesia.

The boy – known locally as Muhammad Ziyad Wijaya – had disappeared two days earlier near the Jawa estuary in East Kalimantan province.

Stunning footage from Borneo’s Mahakam River shows the giant crocodile swimming through the water carrying the boy on its back.

Stunned fishermen spotted the 10-foot reptile swimming nearly 700 feet across the estuary toward a boat.

The boy – known locally as Muhammad Ziyad Wijaya (left) – had disappeared two days earlier near the Jawa estuary in East Kalimantan province

The reptile – usually one of nature’s most ruthless killers – dropped the boy off at a boat, where two men drag the body on board.

It meant the family could be reunited with their son.

Local media reported that there were no bite marks on the body.

Members of the East Kalimantan Search and Rescue Agency received information that a crocodile was carrying the child they were looking for.

Melkanius Kotta, leader of the team, said: “We believe that the crocodile actually helped to find the victim.

‘Nothing is missing. Everything is intact.’

An unnamed bystander filmed the incredible moment as two men in the boat took the dead child.

After that, the crocodile disappeared under the surface of the water.

It is still known what caused Muhammad to drown or if the crocodiles of the estuary had something to do with his death.

According to initial observations, the little boy accidentally fell into the river while playing.

This is the extraordinary moment when a crocodile carries the unharmed body of a four-year-old boy to rescue workers a mile from where he drowned in a river in Indonesia

The reptile – usually one of nature’s most ruthless killers – dropped the boy off at a boat, where two men drag the body on board

There were no bite marks on the boy’s body after the crocodile carried him down the river

The crocodile’s 700-foot swim allowed Muhammad’s family to recover his body

After the footage garnered widespread internet attention, many online viewers speculated that the crocodile deliberately delivered Muhammad out of compassion and instinct.

Crocodiles kill an average of about 1,000 people a year, but generally do not prey on humans.

According to ResearchGate, there were 221 crocodile attacks in Borneo between 2007 and 2016, resulting in 129 deaths.

Sarawak and East Kalimantan had the most reported attacks.

In February last year, a man was eaten alive by a crocodile while bathing in an Indonesian river.

Luther, 51, was bathing in the water in North Kalimantan province when a 13-foot crocodile pulled him underwater as his friends tried to scare the animal away.

Three species of crocodiles are known to inhabit Borneo – the saltwater crocodile, the Siamese crocodile and the tomistoma.

• The mafia’s last godfather enjoyed unusually strong loyalty
• The Omerta code of silence also helped the boss hide
• “Last Godfather” Messina Denaro lived near his mother

PALERMO, Italy, Jan. 25 (Portal) – When Salvatore Catalano found out that mob boss Matteo Messina Denaro had lived a short walk from his home in the western Sicilian town of Campobello di Mazara, he felt sick.

Catalano’s brother Agostino was a police officer who died in a 1992 bombing that killed anti-mob judge Paolo Borsellino – an attack prosecutors say Messina Denaro helped mastermind it.

“There’s anger in my heart and soul now that I know he was here and I didn’t recognize him,” Catalano told Portal.

Messina Denaro, 60, was arrested on January 16 after 30 years on the run. Police believe he has spent much of the past year in hiding in Campobello di Mazara, a town of about 11,000 people a short drive from his mother’s home.

“We celebrated the arrest with my family. He is in prison and will now be subject to strict detention rules,” Catalano said.

The last confirmed sighting of Messina Denaro was in 1993, making it difficult for police to identify Italy’s most wanted man. He led what appeared to be an open life in the city, shopping for himself at the local supermarket, authorities said.

Prosecutors say their hunt was further complicated by the unusually strong loyalty he received from members of his clan in western Sicily.

Portal interviewed dozens of residents on the streets of Campobello and from his nearby hometown of Castelvetrano, as well as prosecutors and police officers who helped him track him down.

They revealed the investigators of the struggle they faced as they tried to breach the wall of “omerta” or mafia code of silence that had been shattered in other parts of Sicily but still stood firm around Messina Denaro, that of the Italian press as “the last godfather”.

“I have arrested at least 200 people related to him. Only one of them chose to cooperate with the judiciary,” said Roberto Piscitello, a prosecutor who tried to arrest Messina Denaro from 1996 to 2008.

“In the nearby provinces of Palermo and Agrigento, five out of 10 of those arrested become defectors,” he told Portal at his home in Marsala on Sicily’s western tip.

In the end, it wasn’t Messina Denaro’s fellow gangsters that betrayed him, but his failing body.

WRONG IDENTITY

Police say they managed to capture Messina Denaro after learning from listening devices owned by his relatives that he had cancer.

They had long suspected he lived in his native Sicily, and a thorough investigation of cancer patients in the area revealed that a man named Andrea Bonafede had surgery in the western town of Mazara del Vallo while his mobile phone was active in another part of the island .

Investigators took this as the “first significant confirmation” that Messina Denaro could be hiding under this false identity, court documents viewed by Portal showed, as it suggested the man performing the operation was not the real one Andrea Bonafede was believed to be on his phone.

They went to see the patient and learned that he was due to receive routine chemotherapy on January 16 in the island’s capital, Palermo.

Police surrounded the clinic and fell after the patient arrived for his appointment. He immediately acknowledged his true identity, but seemed to dashed any hopes that he would spill the beans of his life of crime.

“I have my code of ethics,” a law enforcement source quoted him as telling judges when they first met him, referring to the Sicilian Mafia’s rule, which has been severely belittled over the past 30 years, with no one to talk outside about the organization.

His silence means investigators must try to figure out as best they can how he managed to evade detection over the years.

The initial focus of their investigation was the real Andrea Bonafede, a trained surveyor who had no criminal record.

Bonafede has confirmed that he has known Messina Denaro since they were young and has admitted buying the mobster an apartment in Campobello di Mazara, prosecutors said. He himself is in custody and has not commented publicly on the case.

Police are also investigating his driver, Giovanni Luppino, an olive farmer who also had no criminal record. He was carrying a jackknife and had turned off both of his cell phones in what judges said was an attempt to prevent pursuit.

He has denied knowing the real identity of his passenger.

Palermo chief prosecutor Maurizio de Lucia told Portal that men like Bonafede constituted the “first link” of the refugee’s matrix – those who took care of his basic needs.

But he believes his support network had deep roots.

“His territory helped him for many years. It is reasonable to assume that it was protected by professionals and entrepreneurs,” he said.

His doctor Alfonso Tumbarello is among those who are already under investigation for allegedly helping the boss. His attorney said he was confident his client could prove his innocence.

BUSINESS CONTACTS

Judges said they found evidence Messina Denaro had visited Spain, Greece and Austria over the years. However, the focus of his business activities remained in western Sicily, so he probably spent much of his time on the island.

Dozens of lower-level mafiosi have been arrested in the region over the years — a thinning of Messina Denaro’s inner circle, which judges said repeatedly interrupted promising leads they had hoped would one day lead her to the boss .

“(But) we couldn’t sacrifice justice. We couldn’t leave gangsters on the streets,” prosecutor Paolo Guido, who has led the long hunt for the boss in recent years, told Portal.

Prosecutors said the mob boss had developed a wide range of financial interests that went far beyond traditional mafioso concerns and helped him build a loyal network of employees.

A secret 2013 recording made in prison revealed that former boss of bosses Salvatore “the Beast” Riina had complained that his former protégé was investing in renewable energy projects instead of focusing on hardcore – Focus mafia activities.

“In the Sicilian context, those who are believed to create jobs and have the opportunity to do business are given consensus and protection,” said Colonel Antonello Parasiliti Molica, who heads the anti-crime unit of the Carabinieri Special Forces in Palermo.

writing by Angelo Amante; Edited by Crispian Balmer and Ross Colvin

Our standards: The Thomson Portal Trust Principles.

In an interview with the AP news agency, Pope Francis called laws criminalizing homosexuality worldwide “unjust”. He also reiterated that homosexuality is a “sin.”

The Pope affirms the teaching of the Church. In an interview with the American press agency Associated Press (AP) on Tuesday, he estimated that the laws criminalizing homosexuality worldwide were “unfair”, he also explained that this sexual orientation is a “fishing”.

“Being gay is not a crime,” he told the AP. “It’s not a crime. Yes, but it’s a sin. Fine, but first let’s distinguish between a sin and a crime.”

“It’s also a sin not to have charity for one another,” he added.

When asked about the stance of priests who support discrimination against LGBT people, Pope Francis said they should rather engage in a “process of conversion” and show “tenderness.”

A position confirmed by the Vatican

In 2021 the establishment of Vatican The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which is responsible for establishing and preserving Catholic dogma, had already emphasized that the Church regards homosexuality as a “sin”.

When asked, “Does the church have the power to bless same-sex couples? sin can bless”.

The institution concluded that “the Church neither has nor can have the power to bless associations of persons of the same sex”, recalling that this text had been approved by the Pope.

Doomsday near: the doomsday clock at 90 seconds to midnight

The approach of Armageddon is “due in large part, but not solely, to theinvasion of Ukraine by Russia and the growing risk of a nuclear escalation,” wrote the scientists, who published the press release with their decision in Russian and Ukrainian for the first time, in order to interest the warning in the capitals.

“The US government, its NATO allies and Ukraine have multiple channels of dialogue. We ask the guides to explore them,” so we can turn back the clock and push out the end, Bronson added.

The clock of the apocalypse strikesWarning to all mankind. We are on the brink of disaster, but our leaders are not acting fast enough to ensure a peaceful and livable planet,” said former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson.

Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon echoed her: “We are close to midnight and it shows how the world has become more dangerous in the wake of the pandemic, the climate and Russia’s scandalous war in Ukraine.”