Podcast appearances and mentions of Ursula von der Leyen

Iain and Jacqui discuss COP28, the row over the Elgin Marbles, the death of Henry Kissinger, Alistair Darling, Shane MacGowan and Dean Sullivan, Royal troubles, Ursula von der Leyen's comments on Britain rejoining the EU, strife in the Lib Dems, Jonny Reynolds, Christmas Number Ones and their appearance in Northampton. Smut quota: Very low unless you find Iain's sniffles a turn-on.

Palace considers legal action after Piers Morgan names ‘royal racists'Lee Anderson tells Ursula von der Leyen to ‘shut up' about BrexitFormer Labour chancellor Alistair Darling dies aged 70Microsoft hands Britain £2.5bn digital boostRead all these articles and stay expertly informed anywhere, anytime with a digital subscription. Start your free one-month trial today to gain unlimited website and app access. Cancel anytime. Sign up here: http://bit.ly/2WRuvh9See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

No podcast ‘Notícia No Seu Tempo', confira em áudio as principais notícias da edição impressa do jornal ‘O Estado de S.Paulo' desta quarta-feira (22/11/2023): Com o avanço da reforma tributária, Estados começaram a aumentar a alíquota-padrão do ICMS que incide sobre a maior parte dos produtos e serviços. Ontem, a Assembleia Legislativa do Maranhão aprovou aumento na alíquota de 20% para 22%, a vigorar em 2024. Seis Estados do Sul e do Sudeste (SP, RJ, MG, ES, PR e RS) também indicaram elevação do imposto e alegaram necessidade de “neutralizar perdas potenciais” com a futura divisão do IBS (Imposto sobre Bens e Serviços, que substituirá o ICMS e o ISS). Pela reforma, pendente de uma segunda análise pela Câmara, a receita de Estados e municípios com o IBS será proporcional à média da arrecadação entre 2024 e 2028. E mais: Internacional: Após vitória de Milei, Lula tenta fechar logo acordo do Mercosul com europeus Metrópole: Fraudes e desperdícios custaram aos planos de saúde R$ 34 bilhões em 2022 Economia: Parlamentares criam texto alternativo à MP da subvenção Política: Relator do Orçamento avalia retirar verba do PAC para inflar fundo eleitoralSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Early next month, the European Union and China are set to hold the 24th bilateral summit. The last EU-China summit was held via video conference in April 2022. It took place against the background of China's countermeasures to EU sanctions on human rights, Chinese economic coercion and trade measures against the single market, and most importantly, Russia's military aggression against Ukraine and Beijing's unwillingness to condemn the invasion. Earlier this year, the European Council reaffirmed the EU's multifaceted policy approach towards China, which is based on the judgment that China is simultaneously a partner, a competitor, and a systemic rival. However, that balancing act is getting more and more difficult.Host Bonnie Glaser is joined by Mr. Gunnar Wiegand, who has recently retired from the post of Managing Director for Asia and the Pacific at the European External Action Service, which he held for 7 ½ years. He is now a visiting professor at the College of Europe and the Paris School of International Affairs, and as of November 1, 2023, he has joined GMF's Indo-Pacific program as a visiting distinguished fellow.  Timestamps[01:39] EU-China Relations on the Eve of the 24th Bilateral Summit[05:13] Impact of the War in Ukraine on EU-China Relations[07:29] How could China alleviate concerns in Europe? [09:33] De-risking in the European Union[15:27] Proportionate and Precise Economic Security[18:27] How similar are EU and US perceptions of China?[22:13] The EU's Stance on Taiwan[26:19] How can EU contribute to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait?[27:21] Outcomes of the Biden-Xi Summit

The European Commission is deliberating on lowering the protection status of wolves in the EU. It seems like this decision has been taken after the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen's pony was killed by wolves. Is this really the reason for what many have dubbed “a new European wolf hunt”? To unpack this issue I talked to environmentalists, farmers, top-tier scientists and last but not least, hunters.Our guests are a wildlife biologist, Professor John Linnell, a goat breeder, Bruno Lecomte, a social scientist, ​​Professor Erica von Essen, an environmentalist, the Head of EU Policy at BirdLife International, Ariel Brunner and, last but not least, the Secretary General of the European Federation for Hunting and Conservation, Dr David Scallan. Special thanks to hunting journalist and blogger Denis Plat for his help in ensuring that opinions from rural France were voiced.While making this episode I recorded many hours of material and understandably not all of it made it into the episode. If you would be interested in listening to the individual interviews with the guests in this podcast, please register your interest by clicking here.The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the individual participants and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any organisation. The participants are expressing their personal opinions and perspectives.The Commission's InvitationEuropean Predation MapAttitudes towards returning wolves (Canis lupus) in Germany: Exposure, information sources and trust matter - ScienceDirectFACE | Changes to the protection status of wolves? European Commission launches new phaseSubscribe to Tommy's Outdoors: Conservation and Science NewsletterSupport the Podcast and Buy Me a Coffee.Recommended Books: tommysoutdoors.com/booksMerch: tommysoutdoors.com/shopFollow Tommy's Outdoors on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and Facebook

Die Ampel hat mal wieder ein Problem. Und zwar ein riesengroßes! Denn in ihrem Haushalt für das kommende Jahr klafft ein 60 Milliarden Loch! Dafür hat ein Urteil des Bundesverfassungsgerichts gesorgt. Und nun? Die NDR Satire Intensiv-Station mit Moderator Markus Schubert sucht nach Wegen, um das Milliardenloch zu stopfen! Wie wäre es etwa mit einer Spendenaktion für Deutschland, die von Polit-Promis wie Alice Weidel, Saskia Esken, Winfried Kretschmann und Ursula von der Leyen unterstützt wird? Oder kann der nahende Black Friday die Lösung sein? Vielleicht findet die Politik ja da ein paar günstige Angebote, um die Energiewende voranzutreiben oder Schultoiletten aufzuhübschen! Apropos Black Friday: Eigentlich komisch, dass man in Deutschland diesen Aktionstag erst so spät für sich entdeckt hat. Schließlich gehört der Schnäppchen-Wahn hierzulande doch quasi zur DNA. Oder kann man diese deutsche Tugend auch als Zugezogener lernen? Schließlich ist bei den Tugenden ja sowieso einiges ins Rutschen geraten. Um die deutsche Pünktlichkeit etwa steht es auch nicht mehr allzu gut. So musste Gesundheitsminister Karl Lauterbach einräumen, dass sich die Cannabis-Legalisierung etwas verzögert. Aber so schlimm ist das nicht, wenn man Lautis Tipps befolgt. Und dann gibt es ja noch ein Trostpflaster: Beim Cannabis-Anbau darf weiterhin Glyphosat verwendet werden. Denn für das umstrittene Pflanzenschutzmittel hat die EU-Kommission die Zulassung verlängert! Ist das nicht mal eine tolle Nachricht?! In dieser Folge sind folgende Musiktitel zu hören: "Money on my mind" - Sam Smith "6 Billionen" - Frida Gold "Emotional" - Falco "Simarik" - Tarkan "Seven Nations Army" - The BossHoss "Call me" - The Mike Flowers Pops "Save your soul" - Jamie Cullum "Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life" - Orchester Alison Todd Unser Podcast-Tipp: extra 3 – Bosettis Woche https://www.ardaudiothek.de/sendung/extra-3-bosettis-woche/10358817/

A gondosóra mentett meg egy erdőben eltévedt idős nőt Telex     2023-11-19 11:22:43     Belföld Életmentés Okosóra GPS Az időseknek szánt állami okosórán kért segítséget, a GPS-koordináták alapján találták meg a tűzoltók. Súlyos normazavarokat okoz az elitek bűnözése 24.hu     2023-11-19 13:03:55     Belföld Miért nem követik az emberek a társadalmi normákat? Felkészültek-e a magyar bírák arra, hogy milyen gyors ütemben képes megváltozni az ország gazdasági-társadalmi berendezkedése? A Tangó és Kes legújabb adásában egyebek mellett erről is beszélgettünk Fleck Zoltán jogszociológussal. Máris összeomlott a nagy egyezkedés: felüvöltöttek a fegyverek Gázában Portfolio     2023-11-19 11:38:00     Külföld Izrael Gázai övezet Izrael és az Egyesült Államok is cáfolta a túszok elengedéséről szóló alkuval kapcsolatos, több forrásból származó sajtóinformációkat, Gázában délelőtt súlyos harcok zajlottak. Ursula von der Leyen máris nagy példányszámban fütyül a budapesti utcákon 444.hu     2023-11-19 12:12:08     Belföld Orbán Viktor Európai Bizottság Ursula von der Leyen Alex Sorossal karöltve. Volt idő, amikor Orbán Viktor még komoly, bátor gondolkodású hölgynek titulálta az Európai Bizottság német elnökét. Amerika első embere felvázolta a jövőt – Izrael, Ukrajna és a NATO volt a téma vg.hu     2023-11-19 11:45:19     Külföld Ukrajna Izrael NATO Palesztina Joe Biden Gázai övezet Joe Biden: a Gázai övezetet és Ciszjordániát egyesíteni kell, Ukrajnába a biztonság miatt fektetnek be, a NATO-t erősítik. "Nincs szükségem pénzre, de drága vagyok" - felelte Ibrahimovic arra, hogy jön-e a magyar válogatottba Noizz     2023-11-19 11:15:06     Foci Svédország Trollkodás Az M4 stábja elkapta a Forma-1 Las Vegas-i nagydíján a júniusban végérvényesen visszavonult Zlatan Ibrahimovicot. A 122-szeres svéd válogatott csatár láthatóan nem örült a magyar stábnak, elmondása szerint már a sokadik riporter bombázta kérdésekkel, de aztán mégis felvette a tőle megszokott trollkodós karaktert. Életveszélyt jelent a gyalogosokra nézve az SUV-divat autopro     2023-11-19 16:23:00     Gazdaság A magasabb és agresszívabb megjelenésű autók tényleg veszélyesebbek az emberekre egy friss kutatás szerint. Nem indokolt a digitális jegybankpénzek bevezetése Fintech     2023-11-19 14:14:00     Modern Gazdaság Jegybank Kételyeinek adott hangot a Mastercard egyik vezetője a digitális jegybankpénzek széleskörű használatával kapcsolatban. Veszélyben a mezőgazdasági gépek: lopják a kormányrendszereket és vezérlőterminálokat Agroinform     2023-11-19 10:17:00     Mezőgazdaság Németország Németországban egyenlőre nem világos, hogy a tolvajok mire akarják, illetve tudják használni az eltulajdonított alkatrészeket. Lencsevégre kapták a kihaltnak vélt aprócska állatot Magyar Mezőgazdaság     2023-11-19 13:06:06     Állatvilág David Attenborough Először és utoljára 1961-ben látták a hangyászsünt. A Sir David Attenborough brit természettudósról elnevezett ritka állat azóta sem halt ki, egy nemzetközi tudóscsoport megint találkozott vele, sőt, kutatás közben több új állatfajt is felfedeztek. Nem hallotta meg a csapatutasítást az F1-pilóta Vezess     2023-11-19 12:13:35     Forma1 Alpine Újabb csapatutasítás talált "süket fülekre" az Alpine-nál a Forma-1-es Las Vegas-i Nagydíjon. Ezúttal nem lett balhé belőle, pedig a futamon 12 pozíciót javító Esteban Ocon azt állítja, eleget tett volna a kérésnek, ha hallja. Rossi meglepetéssel várta az ultrákat a Puskás Arénában Magyar Nemzet     2023-11-19 14:33:57     Foci Montenegró Puskás Aréna A 21 éves Balogh Botond is a kezdőcsapatban, Sallai a cserék között a Montenegró elleni mérkőzésen. Szoboszlai egy perc alatt fordított, két gólt lőtt Montenegrónak, ebben a pillanatban csoportelső Magyarország 444.hu     2023-11-19 16:42:00     Foci Szoboszlai Dominik Montenegró A magyar csapatkapitány előbb jobb oldalon mutatott be nagy szólót és lőtt óriási gólt, aztán gyorsan balról is lőtt egyet. 2–1. A következő napok időjárása nyomokban már telet is tartalmazhat Kiderül     2023-11-19 13:39:58     Időjárás Továbbra is változékony időben lesz részünk. A szerdán átvonuló hidegfront után sarkvidéki eredetű léghullámok áramlanak fölénk, a záporok mellett hózáporok is előfordulhatnak.

A gondosóra mentett meg egy erdőben eltévedt idős nőt Telex     2023-11-19 11:22:43     Belföld Életmentés Okosóra GPS Az időseknek szánt állami okosórán kért segítséget, a GPS-koordináták alapján találták meg a tűzoltók. Súlyos normazavarokat okoz az elitek bűnözése 24.hu     2023-11-19 13:03:55     Belföld Miért nem követik az emberek a társadalmi normákat? Felkészültek-e a magyar bírák arra, hogy milyen gyors ütemben képes megváltozni az ország gazdasági-társadalmi berendezkedése? A Tangó és Kes legújabb adásában egyebek mellett erről is beszélgettünk Fleck Zoltán jogszociológussal. Máris összeomlott a nagy egyezkedés: felüvöltöttek a fegyverek Gázában Portfolio     2023-11-19 11:38:00     Külföld Izrael Gázai övezet Izrael és az Egyesült Államok is cáfolta a túszok elengedéséről szóló alkuval kapcsolatos, több forrásból származó sajtóinformációkat, Gázában délelőtt súlyos harcok zajlottak. Ursula von der Leyen máris nagy példányszámban fütyül a budapesti utcákon 444.hu     2023-11-19 12:12:08     Belföld Orbán Viktor Európai Bizottság Ursula von der Leyen Alex Sorossal karöltve. Volt idő, amikor Orbán Viktor még komoly, bátor gondolkodású hölgynek titulálta az Európai Bizottság német elnökét. Amerika első embere felvázolta a jövőt – Izrael, Ukrajna és a NATO volt a téma vg.hu     2023-11-19 11:45:19     Külföld Ukrajna Izrael NATO Palesztina Joe Biden Gázai övezet Joe Biden: a Gázai övezetet és Ciszjordániát egyesíteni kell, Ukrajnába a biztonság miatt fektetnek be, a NATO-t erősítik. "Nincs szükségem pénzre, de drága vagyok" - felelte Ibrahimovic arra, hogy jön-e a magyar válogatottba Noizz     2023-11-19 11:15:06     Foci Svédország Trollkodás Az M4 stábja elkapta a Forma-1 Las Vegas-i nagydíján a júniusban végérvényesen visszavonult Zlatan Ibrahimovicot. A 122-szeres svéd válogatott csatár láthatóan nem örült a magyar stábnak, elmondása szerint már a sokadik riporter bombázta kérdésekkel, de aztán mégis felvette a tőle megszokott trollkodós karaktert. Életveszélyt jelent a gyalogosokra nézve az SUV-divat autopro     2023-11-19 16:23:00     Gazdaság A magasabb és agresszívabb megjelenésű autók tényleg veszélyesebbek az emberekre egy friss kutatás szerint. Nem indokolt a digitális jegybankpénzek bevezetése Fintech     2023-11-19 14:14:00     Modern Gazdaság Jegybank Kételyeinek adott hangot a Mastercard egyik vezetője a digitális jegybankpénzek széleskörű használatával kapcsolatban. Veszélyben a mezőgazdasági gépek: lopják a kormányrendszereket és vezérlőterminálokat Agroinform     2023-11-19 10:17:00     Mezőgazdaság Németország Németországban egyenlőre nem világos, hogy a tolvajok mire akarják, illetve tudják használni az eltulajdonított alkatrészeket. Lencsevégre kapták a kihaltnak vélt aprócska állatot Magyar Mezőgazdaság     2023-11-19 13:06:06     Állatvilág David Attenborough Először és utoljára 1961-ben látták a hangyászsünt. A Sir David Attenborough brit természettudósról elnevezett ritka állat azóta sem halt ki, egy nemzetközi tudóscsoport megint találkozott vele, sőt, kutatás közben több új állatfajt is felfedeztek. Nem hallotta meg a csapatutasítást az F1-pilóta Vezess     2023-11-19 12:13:35     Forma1 Alpine Újabb csapatutasítás talált "süket fülekre" az Alpine-nál a Forma-1-es Las Vegas-i Nagydíjon. Ezúttal nem lett balhé belőle, pedig a futamon 12 pozíciót javító Esteban Ocon azt állítja, eleget tett volna a kérésnek, ha hallja. Rossi meglepetéssel várta az ultrákat a Puskás Arénában Magyar Nemzet     2023-11-19 14:33:57     Foci Montenegró Puskás Aréna A 21 éves Balogh Botond is a kezdőcsapatban, Sallai a cserék között a Montenegró elleni mérkőzésen. Szoboszlai egy perc alatt fordított, két gólt lőtt Montenegrónak, ebben a pillanatban csoportelső Magyarország 444.hu     2023-11-19 16:42:00     Foci Szoboszlai Dominik Montenegró A magyar csapatkapitány előbb jobb oldalon mutatott be nagy szólót és lőtt óriási gólt, aztán gyorsan balról is lőtt egyet. 2–1. A következő napok időjárása nyomokban már telet is tartalmazhat Kiderül     2023-11-19 13:39:58     Időjárás Továbbra is változékony időben lesz részünk. A szerdán átvonuló hidegfront után sarkvidéki eredetű léghullámok áramlanak fölénk, a záporok mellett hózáporok is előfordulhatnak.

Bir süredir para politikası, maliye politikası, enflasyon ve cari açık gibi meselelere odaklandık. Elbette bunda söz konusu başlıklarla ilgili son dönemde atılan adımların etkisi büyük. Oysa cari meseleleri de göz önünde bulundurarak Türkiye'nin uzun vadeli çıkarlarını konuşmaya devam etmeliyiz. Köşe yazılarımı yakından takip edenlerin hatırlayacağı üzere geçen yıl Eylül ayında yine bu köşede “Türkiye'de madencilik ve von der Leyen'den kritik ‘madencilik' mesajı” başlıklı bir yazı kaleme almıştım. Söz konusu yazımda AB'nin “Avrupa Kritik Hammaddeler Yasası” hazırladığını belirtmiştim. Yasaya ilişkin bilgiyi AB Komisyonu Başkanı Ursula von der Leyen vermişti. Von der Leyen, Çin'in nadir elementlerde %90 ve lityumda ise %60 oranında dünyadaki üretim süreçlerini kontrol ettiğini ve bu bağımlılığı azaltmak adına AB'nin “Avrupa Kritik Hammaddeler Yasası” hazırladığını söylemişti. Yine von der Leyen, AB'nin yenilenebilir enerji ve yeni enerji teknolojileri nedeniyle nadir toprak elementlerinde kayda değer şekilde artacak ithalat bağımlılığına önlem almaları gerektiğini ifade etmişti. Bugün geldiğimiz noktada AB Konseyi, üye ülkeler ve Avrupa Parlamentosu (AP) arasında müzakere edilen Kritik Ham Madde Yasası'nda uzlaşı sağlandığını açıkladı. Uzlaşıya göre 34 ürün kritik hammaddeler listesinde yer alacak ve bu listedeki 17 ürün ise “stratejik kritik ham madde” olarak nitelendirilecek. Örneğin alüminyum, bor, kobalt, bakır, galyum, lityum, magnezyum, titanyum ve nikel stratejik kritik ham maddeler arasında yer alacak. Tasarının yasalaşması ile beraber AB, Kritik Ham Madde Yasası kapsamındaki ürünlerin yıllık tüketiminin en az %10'unu kendisi çıkaracak, en az %40'ını kendisi işleyecek ve en az %25'ini geri dönüştürecek. Bu politikanın AB'nin pek çok ülke ile olan ticaretini gözden geçirmesi anlamında geldiğini not edelim. Örneğin AB, niyobyum ihtiyacının %85'ini Brezilya'dan, kobaltının %68'ini Kongo'dan ve boratlarının %98'ini Türkiye'den alıyor. Gelelim bize. Bana göre Türkiye'nin madencilik alanındaki en önemli gelişmelerinden birisi 2022 yılında yaşanmıştı. Zira Türkiye dünyanın ikinci büyük nadir toprak elementleri rezervini bulduğunu ilan etmişti. Dünyadaki nadir toprak elementlerinin %95'i Çin tarafından üretiliyor. Çin'in toplam rezervi 800 milyon ton civarında. Türkiye'de şu an kadar tespit edilen rezerv miktarı ise 694 milyon ton. Bu elementler fiber optik, tıbbi görüntüleme, lazer sensörler, uydu teknolojisi, akıllı füzeler, süper alaşımlar, bataryalar, enerji depolama sistemleri ve elektrikli otomobiller başta olmak üzere yüksek teknoloji ürünlerde kullanılıyor. Elbette bu nadir toprak elementlerini işleyip ekonomiye kazandırmak ve ihracatını yapmak çok kritik bir konu. Eti Maden Beylikova Tesisleri'ndeki pilot tesis cevher işlemesine başlayacak. Daha sonra çok daha büyük bir endüstriyel yatırım ile Türkiye'nin bu alanda söz sahibi ülkelerden birisi olması öngörülüyor. Bu konu aynı zamanda Türkiye'nin ekonomi güvenliği ve ekonomideki bağımlılık oranının azaltılması için de stratejik önem taşıyor. Dahası görünen o ki AB'nin bundan sonraki stratejisi için de Türkiye olmazsa olmaz konumda olacak. Ümit ederim AB Konseyi kendi üzerindeki Yunanistan ve Güney Kıbrıs Rum Yönetimi'nin baskısından kurtulur ve gerçeği bir an önce görerek Türkiye'ye yönelik olumsuz tavırlarını ortadan kaldırır. Çünkü AB için de en iyi seçenek bu.

La pollution de l'eau du robinet par les PFAS, les polluants éternels, va animer la journée en Wallonie. La ministre de l'environnement Céline Tellier est attendue de pied ferme au parlement. Une polémique qui intervient alors que dans le même temps l'Europe renonce à les interdire par peur du déclassement industriel. Polluants éternels Oui, les PFAS sont des polluants éternels, oui, les PFAS sont un problème de santé publique. Oui, ils interviennent dans la survenue de cancers, de dysfonctionnements hormonaux, d'affaiblissement du système immunitaire. Pourtant, non, on ne va pas les interdire. Car l'industrie européenne dit n'avoir à ce jour aucune alternative économiquement crédible et rentable pour les remplacer. Or, ce sont des éléments importants dans la chaîne industrielle et de consommation: GSM, cosmétiques, imperméables, produits de nettoyage, emballages alimentaires, voitures, éoliennes, appareils médicaux. La Commission européenne a donc discrètement décidé il y a quelques jours d'abandonner la proposition d'interdiction de ces polluants qui figurait pourtant dans le Green Deal de la présidente Ursula Von der Leyen. Santé publique VS Géopolitique Les temps ont changé. Au moment où Ursula Von Der Leyen a présenté son Green Deal, l'interdiction des PFAS paraissait un objectif atteignable. Il y avait un coût bien sûr pour l'industrie, mais un coût qui semblait politiquement assumable. Désormais, sur fond de guerre en Ukraine, et de recomposition rapide du monde, la souveraineté industrielle est devenue un thème majeur. La Chine, la Russie et surtout les États-Unis mettent en place des politiques protectionnistes. L'Europe, en particulier l'Allemagne et son industrie chimique bâtie sur le gaz russe, est en train de perdre des milliards d'euros d'investissement au profit de pays plus accueillants et plus compétitifs. C'est le cas en particulier des États-Unis dopés par le méga plan de relance de Joe Biden. Résultat, l'économie européenne décroche face aux États-Unis. C'était déjà vrai depuis la crise de 2008, mais l'écart s'accentue depuis la guerre en Ukraine. En Allemagne, il suffit d'ouvrir un journal, c'est la panique, le risque de déclassement industriel est évoqué tous les jours. Les lobbyistes du secteur chimique n'ont pas dû chercher bien loin des arguments pour convaincre les décideurs européens, y compris la Belgique, de reporter une interdiction des PFAS, qui aurait encore affaibli leurs positions. Conflits La montée de la préoccupation pour la souveraineté industrielle en Europe va poser des tas de questions environnementales dans un continent très peuplé, armé de législations strictes. Au nom de la souveraineté industrielle, l'Europe est amenée à construire de nouvelles capacités nucléaires, ou à ouvrir ses propres mines de lithium pour alimenter les batteries des voitures électriques. Le temps où l'union pouvait délocaliser ses industries les plus polluantes et tabler sur une économie de service et de hautes technologies semble révolu. La pause réglementaire réclamée par Alexander De Croo il y a quelques mois au nom d'impératifs stratégiques est en train de s'imposer. L'abandon de l'interdiction des PFAS par la Commission en est une parfaite illustration. La Wallonie en bout de chaîne, n'aura pas d'autre choix que de faire face. Il va falloir faire avec des PFAS dans notre environnement, assumer le coût pour la dépollution des sols et de l'eau, assumer le coût pour la santé publique. Selon une étude de l'Agence européenne des produits chimiques, le coût des PFAS sur la santé publique est estimé entre 52 et 84 milliards d'euros par an en Europe. Une autre étude, menée par la commission et citée par le journal Le Monde, calculait que le coût d'une interdiction pour l'industrie était bien moins important : entre 1 milliard et 2,7 milliards d'euros par an. Mais dans une Europe qui risque le déclassement, l'industrie est en position de force et ces arguments ne sont plus audibles. Merci pour votre écoute Les coulisses du Pouvoir c'est également en direct tous les jours de la semaine vers 7h40 sur www.rtbf.be/lapremiere Retrouvez tous les épisodes de Les coulisses du Pouvoir sur notre plateforme Auvio.be : https://auvio.rtbf.be/emission/11443 Retrouvez également les autres séquences de Matin Première en podcast : https://audmns.com/ZfOoFbG Et si vous avez apprécié ce podcast, n'hésitez pas à nous donner des étoiles ou des commentaires, cela nous aide à le faire connaître plus largement.

Roter Parteitag: SPÖ am Scheideweg?Beim Parteitag am Wochenende will SPÖ-Chef Andi Babler die Sozialdemokraten auf ein gemeinsames Programm einschwören. Dabei soll die Partei weiter nach links rücken, um die SPÖ fit für die Wahlen im kommenden Jahr zu machen. Doch Kritiker bemängeln: dem Thema Asyl und Migration wird vergleichsweise wenig Raum gegeben. Der lautstärkste Kritiker, der innerparteiliche Babler-Konkurrent Hans Peter Doskozil, wird erst gar nicht am Parteitag teilnehmen. Und in Umfragen setzt die SPÖ unter Andreas Babler den Abwärtskurs seiner Vorgängerin Pamela Rendi-Wagner weiter fort. Ist die SPÖ nach wie vor zerstritten? Kann man als staatstragende Partei das Thema Migration in Zeiten wie diesen wirklich ausblenden? Und lassen sich mit Linkspopulismus Wahlen gewinnen?EU umwirbt die Ukraine: Milliardenzeche für uns Bürger?Kommissionspräsidentin Ursula von der Leyen empfiehlt den Start von Aufnahmegesprächen mit der Ukraine. Das würde das politische Gleichgewicht und die Finanzen in der Union gehörig durcheinanderwirbeln: Laut internen Berechnungen des Europäischen Rats stünden Kiew alleine 186 Milliarden Euro an Subventionen zu. Jeder einzelne Mitgliedsstaat müsste weit mehr Geld an Brüssel zahlen – und erhielte dafür weniger Subventionen. Nicht umsonst stemmt sich Ungarn bereits dagegen. Handelt es sich bei den Aufnahmegesprächen um einen reinen Symbolakt oder ist es ein wichtiges Zeichen der Solidarität? Und hat die Kommission die Interessen der Ukraine stärker im Auge als die Interessen der EU-Bürger?Darüber diskutiert Moderatorin Katrin Prähauser mit diesen Gästen: Veit Dengler, Medienunternehmer,Ralf Schuler, Journalist bei „Nius“,Donna Krasniqi, SPÖ-nahe Aktivistin,Andras Szigetvari, Wirtschaftsredakteur beim „Standard“.

Ucraina e Moldova più vicine all'Unione europea dopo il via libera da parte di Kyiv a 4 dei 7 dossier vincolanti indicati da Bruxelles. Ursula von der Leyen celebra il decennale delle proteste di Maidan nella capitale Ucraina rilanciando il processo di allargamento. Frena intanto la stretta sulle emissioni nel dossier Euro7 approvato dopo un intervento del Parlamento. In questa puntata parliamo anche con il dott. Juan Pascual (veterinario e ricercatore di Barcellona) che spiega perché essere "onnivori" è un vantaggio competitivo non solo per l'uomo ma anche per l'ambiente. Poi Elisabetta Tommasi ci guida alla scoperta al telescopio europeo Euclid che questa settimana ha diffuso le prime straordinarie 5 immagini.

Nous commencerons notre programme en examinant quelques-uns des principaux sujets d'actualité de la semaine. Tout d'abord, nous commenterons la position de l'Union européenne sur l'avenir de Gaza, telle qu'elle a été exposée le 6 novembre par la présidente de la Commission européenne, Ursula von der Leyen. Ensuite, nous tenterons d'expliquer pourquoi l'armée ukrainienne a si peu progressé ces derniers mois malgré les contre-offensives menées. Dans la partie scientifique de notre programme, nous parlerons d'une étude qui a été publiée dans la revue Journal of Personality and Social Psychology par des chercheurs de l'université A&M du Texas. Elle indique que la colère pourrait améliorer notre capacité à atteindre un objectif dans des situations difficiles. Enfin, nous nous intéresserons au premier championnat du monde de raclette qui s'est tenu la semaine dernière dans le village de Morgins, dans les Alpes suisses.    Cette semaine, nous discuterons du point de vue des Français sur la vie après la mort d'après une étude récente. Nous commenterons pour finir la candidature de la France pour l'organisation des Jeux olympiques d'hiver en 2030. - L'UE expose sa position sur l'avenir de Gaza - La faible progression de l'armée ukrainienne soulève des interrogations sur le soutien occidental - La colère aide à traiter les tâches difficiles - Le premier championnat du monde de raclette organisé dans les Alpes suisses - Fête de la Toussaint : un Français sur trois croit qu'il y a une vie après la mort - Les Alpes françaises candidates pour l'organisation des Jeux olympiques d'hiver 2030

Nel corso del nostro programma approfondiremo alcune delle notizie più importanti della settimana. Commenteremo, innanzitutto, la dichiarazione rilasciata dalla Presidente della Commissione Europea, Ursula von der Leyen, lo scorso 6 novembre, sul ruolo dell'Unione Europea nel futuro geopolitico di Gaza. Quindi, analizzeremo alcuni dei motivi che potrebbero spiegare la mancanza di successi militari in Ucraina nonostante mesi di combattimenti. Nella sezione scientifica del programma, parleremo di uno studio pubblicato sul Journal of Personality and Social Psychology dai ricercatori della Texas A&M University, che suggerisce che la rabbia migliorerebbe la capacità delle persone di raggiungere i propri obiettivi in situazioni difficili. Infine, ci sposteremo a Morgins, sulle Alpi svizzere, per partecipare al primo Campionato mondiale di raclette, inaugurato la scorsa settimana.    La prima notizia riguarda un recente regolamento adottato dall'Unione Europea che dovrebbe ostacolare con più forza l'Italian sounding, ovvero quella pratica, spesso ingannevole, di utilizzare immagini, nomi e riferimenti che evocano l'Italia ma che, di fatto, non hanno nulla a che fare con il nostro Paese. Successivamente parleremo di una sentenza giudiziaria che ha riaperto il dibattito pubblico sui cosiddetti "mammoni", un termine italiano usato per descrivere giovani adulti, sia maschi che femmine, che continuano a vivere con i genitori nonostante abbiano abbondantemente superato la maggiore età. - L'UE dichiara la sua posizione sul futuro di Gaza - La mancanza di successi militari in Ucraina solleva preoccupazioni sul sostegno occidentale - È dimostrato che la rabbia aiuta ad affrontare compiti impegnativi - Il primo Campionato mondiale di raclette inaugurato nelle Alpi svizzere - L'UE mette al bando l'Italian sounding - “Mammoni” d'Italia: una decisione giudiziaria riaccende il dibattito

Wir wollen unser Programm mit einem Rückblick auf einige aktuelle Nachrichten beginnen. Als Erstes werden wir über die Position der EU zur Zukunft des Gazastreifens sprechen, die die Präsidentin der Europäischen Kommission, Ursula von der Leyen, am 6. November erläutert hat. Anschließend diskutieren wir einige der Gründe, die das bisherige Ausbleiben militärischer Erfolge in der Ukraine trotz monatelanger Kämpfe erklären könnten. Im wissenschaftlichen Teil des Programms sprechen wir über eine im Journal of Personality and Social Psychology veröffentlichte Studie von Forschern der Texas A&M University, wonach Wut die Fähigkeit von Menschen verbessert, in schwierigen Situationen ihre Ziele zu erreichen. Und zum Schluss sprechen wir über die erste Raclette-Weltmeisterschaft, die letzte Woche in dem Dorf Morgins in den Schweizer Alpen stattfand. Weiter geht es mit dem zweiten Teil unseres Programms, „Trending in Germany“. Wir werden eine aktuelle Studie der Universität Leipzig diskutieren, in der festgestellt wurde, dass deutsche Frauen heute mit einer tieferen Stimme sprechen als noch vor 20 Jahren. Das wirft interessante Fragen auf, insbesondere im Hinblick auf die Rolle von Frauen und auf gesellschaftliche Veränderungen. Außerdem sprechen wir über ein Thema, das in letzter Zeit für Diskussionen gesorgt hat, nämlich die Umstellung von Sommerzeit auf Winterzeit. Dies löst Kontroversen aus, und die meisten Menschen sind dafür, die Zeitumstellung abzuschaffen. EU nimmt Stellung zur Zukunft des Gazastreifens Der ausbleibende militärische Erfolg in der Ukraine lässt Sorgen über die Unterstützung aus dem Westen aufkommen Wut hilft bei der Bewältigung schwieriger Aufgaben Erste Raclette-Weltmeisterschaft in den Schweizer Alpen Erfolg der Emanzipation? Deutsche Frauen senken Stimmfrequenz Das Problem mit der Zeitumstellung

Comenzaremos el programa echando un vistazo a algunas de las principales noticias de la semana. Primero comentaremos la postura de la UE sobre el futuro de Gaza, delineada el 6 de noviembre por Ursula von der Leyen, la presidenta de la Comisión Europea. A continuación, analizaremos algunas de las razones que podrían explicar la falta de éxito militar de Ucrania tras meses de combate. En la sección de ciencia, discutiremos un estudio publicado en el Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, llevado a cabo por investigadores de la Universidad Texas A&M, que sugiere que la ira podría ayudar a la gente a alcanzar sus objetivos en situaciones difíciles. Y, para acabar, hablaremos del primer Campeonato Mundial de la Raclette, celebrado la semana pasada en el pueblo de Morgins, en los Alpes suizos. En la segunda parte del programa, Trending in Spain, hoy hablaremos de medicina y de arte. En la primera noticia discutiremos algunos avances científicos que permiten la gestación de un bebé por dos madres. En la segunda noticia comentaremos la migración de una obra emblemática del artista vasco Agustín Ibarrola perteneciente a la corriente del Land Art y su repercusión mediática. La UE delinea su postura sobre el futuro de Gaza La falta de éxitos militares de Ucrania suscita preocupación sobre el apoyo occidental Se demuestra que la ira ayuda a gestionar las tareas difíciles Celebrado en los Alpes suizos el primer Campeonato Mundial de la Raclette Primer bebé en Europa gestado por dos madres El nuevo Bosque Pintado de Oma

C dans l'air du 9 novembre 2023 - Israël, Ukraine ... l'Occident sur des braises Une conférence humanitaire est organisée ce jeudi à Paris, réunissant Etats et ONG au chevet de Gaza pilonnée par l'armée israélienne depuis les attaques du 7 octobre, avec un message : les populations civiles n'ont pas à payer pour les crimes du Hamas. L'aide humanitaire nécessaire est estimée à plus d'un milliard de dollars par les Nations unies. Mais comment l'acheminer alors que les bombardements sont quotidiens ? Emmanuel Macron a appelé ce jeudi 9 novembre à "œuvrer à un cessez-le-feu" entre Israël et le Hamas en ouverture de la conférence. "Dans l'immédiat, c'est à la protection des civils qu'il nous faut travailler. Il faut pour cela une pause humanitaire très rapide et il nous faut œuvrer à un cessez-le-feu", a déclaré le chef de l'État. "Celui-ci doit pouvoir devenir possible", a-t-il ajouté, avant de s'engager à verser 100 millions d'euros d'aide de la part de la France. Si Paris a apporté son soutien à Israël à la suite de l'attaque du Hamas le 7 octobre qui a fait 1.400 morts et conduit à la prise en otage de 239 personnes, les préoccupations sont croissantes à l'égard des victimes civiles dans la bande de Gaza signalées chaque jour dans les frappes israéliennes menées depuis lors en représailles. Des milliers de personnes ont été tuées, blessées et déplacées. Les appels à un cessez-le-feu se multiplient. Une bonne partie du monde exprime son soutien à la cause palestinienne et en veut aux Occidentaux de ne rien faire pour arrêter la tragédie que vivent les civils gazaouis. Une situation qui profite notamment à Vladimir Poutine qui se pose en défenseur des Palestiniens bombardés alors que la guerre en Ukraine semble désormais passer au second plan. Le week-end dernier lors, d'une conférence de presse aux côtés de la présidente de la Commission européenne Ursula von der Leyen, Volodymyr Zelensky a estimé que le conflit entre Israël et le Hamas avait "détourné l'attention" de la guerre opposant l'Ukraine à la Russie, au moment où Kiev redoute que la lassitude ne gagne progressivement ses alliés qui ne voient pas d'avancer significative sur le terrain. Il y un an, en effet, les forces ukrainiennes célébraient la libération de la ville de Kherson. Mais depuis, la ligne de front n'a guère bougé, malgré de multiples attaques russes et la contre-offensive ukrainienne lancée en juin. Pour tenter de rassurer Kiev, les Occidentaux ont multiplié ces derniers jours les engagements à rester fidèles à leur promesse de soutenir l'Ukraine jusqu'au bout. Les ministres des Affaires étrangères du G7 l'ont réaffirmé mercredi lors de leur réunion au Japon. Mardi, le ministre des Armées Sébastien Lecornu a aussi annoncé qu'il allait réabonder de 200 millions d'euros le fonds de soutien de la France à Kiev, pour permettre à l'armée ukrainienne de poursuivre ses achats d'équipements français. Le même jour, les Pays-Bas ont, eux, envoyé cinq premiers avions de combat F-16 vers la Roumanie, où ils seront utilisés pour former des pilotes ukrainiens. Surtout la Commission européenne vient de recommander l'ouverture des discussions d'adhésion avec Kiev. Les 27 Etats membres doivent désormais valider cette proposition lors d'un Conseil européen. La route vers l'adhésion est encore longue pour l'Ukraine, puisque l'ouverture de négociations ne garantit pas une place dans l'UE, mais cette annonce de Bruxelles a un côté rassurant pour Kiev au moment où le front est devenu statique. La guerre risque de durer encore longtemps. Et des divisions apparaissent aux États-Unis sur le soutien à l'Ukraine qui ne vont faire que s'aggraver à l'approche des élections. LES EXPERTS : GÉNÉRAL CHRISTOPHE GOMART - Ancien directeur du renseignement militaire, ex-commandant des opérations spéciales ELSA VIDAL - Rédactrice en chef de la rédaction en langue russe - RFI ANNE NIVAT - Grand reporter - Le Point SYLVIE KAUFFMANN - Éditorialiste internationale - Le Monde

Már mi is nehezen hisszük el, hányadik adást kell ehhez hasonló címmel elkészítsük: újfent késnek az uniós források, az Európai Bizottság szerint pedig nincs is miről tárgyalni, hiszen világosak a feltételek, csak az Orbán-kormány nem teljesíti azokat. A mai adásban annak járunk utána, most éppen hol véreztek el a magyar vállalások, újra áttekintjük, miben és mit kéne változtatnia a magyar államnak, melyek azok a pénzek, amelyeket úgy tűnik, végleg elengedtek, valamint újfent Navracsics Tibor-hasonmásversenyt játszunk és megpróbáljuk megtippelni, mikorra érkezhetnek meg (most már tényleg) a hőn áhított EU-s pénzek. Ezen kívül kiderül az is, hogyan fogadták Orbán kínai és türk útjait Brüsszelben, van-e bármi esélye szövetségeseket találni, és képes-e az Unió egyszerre jól cselekedni és a szövetségesei mellett kiállni a két párhuzamos háborúban. Nagy Iván Lászlóhoz telefonon csatlakozott Arató László, a brüsszeli EUrológus szerzője. Iratkozzon fel a HVG Podcastok csatornájára Spotify-on, Apple Podcasts-on, Google Podcasts-on vagy hallgassa adásainkat és iratkozzon fel YouTube-csatornánkra! A HVG podcastjait most már külön-külön is megtalálja - csak keressen rá a műsor címére podcastapplikációja keresőjében és hallgassa meg a Fülke, a zCast, a Mérlegen, a Vasfüggöny, a Kösz, jól és az Elvitelre adásait! • 1:21: Miért késnek ismét az uniós források? • 4:06: Mit rakott le a magyar kormány az asztalra és miért nem felel ez meg a megállapodásoknak? • 7:45: Van-e olyan pénz, amit a szó szoros értelmében elbukhatunk? És ami nem jött, az most hiányzik, vagy később fog csak igazán? • 11:54: Zárolhatnak-e további milliárdokat, ha például szigorítják a homofóbtörvényt vagy elfogadják a „szuverenitásvédelmi” terveket? • 15:29: Sikerült az Európai Bizottságnak a magyar üggyel elrettentenie más országokat a visszaélésektől? • 18:10: Mikorra reális most már tényleg, hogy csurranjon-cseppenjen valami? • 20:34: Hogyan fogadták Brüsszelben Orbán Viktor kínai és közép-ázsiai találkozóit, Putyinnal kézfogását, diktátorok közt mosolyogva integetését? • 23:07: Mennyire reális célja a Fidesznek minden ilyen népszerűségvesztés után, hogy pártcsaládot találjon Európában? Ki fanyalodna rájuk? • 28:17: Mi a brüsszeli álláspont Gáza kérdésében? Hogyan tud morálisan jó maradni úgy, hogy az az Izrael a szövetségese, amely közben rengeteg civil áldozatot szed? • 31:47: Mi a helyzet Várhelyi Olivérrel, aki botrányt keltett azzal, hogy egyoldalúan (és tévesen) bejelentette, nem küld az EU több segélyt a palesztinoknak? • 33:45: Ursula von der Leyen múlt hétvégén Kijevben járt – ezzel jelezte az Unió, hogy nem feledkezett el Ukrajnáról? • 35:33: Bírni fogja Európa a két háborút egyszerre? • 37:54: Tabu téma, vagy van valamilyen elképzelés arról, hogyan lehet megóvni mind a muszlim, mind a zsidó közösségek, mind a teljes európai társadalom biztonságát az esetleges etnikai és terrortámadásoktól? • 40:39: Az izraeli események nyomán elképzelhető, hogy a jövő évi kampány a terrorizmusról és a migrációról fog szólni?

L'Ukraine va faire un pas historique en direction de l'Union Européenne aujourd'hui. Sa candidature à l'adhésion devrait être officiellement validée par la commission de Bruxelles. Un processus à vitesse grand V malgré les immenses défis économiques que pose sa candidature. Kiev a fait sa demande en février 2022 quelques jours après le début de la guerre et elle a été acceptée dès le mois de juin. Après l'avis favorable de la commission, ce sera aux 27 de donner leur feu vert pour démarrer les discussions formelles. C'est à cause de cette guerre russe que le processus a été accéléré. En temps de paix, l'Ukraine aurait eu sans doute beaucoup plus de mal à convaincre aussi rapidement étant donné le grand écart entre son économie et celle des 27. Son PIB par habitant représente seulement le dixième de la moyenne européenne, ou encore la moitié de celui de la Bulgarie, le pays le plus pauvre de l'Union. La corruption endémique qui gangrène toute l'économie, l'oligarchie qui prévaut sont les autres obstacles majeurs sur la voie de l'adhésion.L'Ukraine, un pays entièrement à reconstruire une fois la paix revenueD'après la Banque mondiale cela coûtera au moins 400 milliards de dollars. La guerre et l'occupation d'une partie du pays ont effacé 30% du PIB en une année. Sept millions d'Ukrainiens ont plongé dans la grande pauvreté. Malgré ces marches arrière, l'économie ukrainienne tourne toujours à environ 70% du niveau d'avant-guerre et la culture des terres noires si réputées pour leur fertilité ont encore permis d'exporter de large quantité de blé en 2022. Mais l'État ukrainien, entièrement concentré sur l'effort de guerre, est en permanence sous perfusion financière. Il est alimenté par le FMI, les Etats-Unis et l'Union européenne.L'adhésion future de l'Ukraine implique donc des transferts massifs des 27 vers ce nouvel entrantSi le budget est constant, cela signifie que les parts du gâteau seront revues à la baisse pour les 27. Les fonds européens étant distribué entre autres en fonction du poids démographique, l'Ukraine forte de ses 44 millions d'habitants, absorbera une part considérable de la manne bruxelloise. La taille de son agriculture en fera sans doute l'un des premiers bénéficiaires de la Politique agricole commune (PAC). Les pays aujourd'hui bénéficiaires nets de l'UE pourraient donc devenir des contributeurs nets.Cela ne manquera pas d'inquiéter les pays de l'est de l'EuropeDes États membres qui ont largement profiter des subsides européens. Pour éviter à l'Europe de se déchirer avec ce nouvel élargissement, elle devra revoir de fond en comble les règles de son financement. Pourquoi pas se doter enfin du pouvoir de lever l'impôt ? Ou encore de celui d'emprunter régulièrement sur les marchés ? Ces idées sont très polémiques parmi les 27, mais il faudra en débattre, cela sera incontournable une fois que Kiev aura entamé les négociations d'adhésion. Une procédure qui peut durer des années.

Der britische Informatiker Alan Turing, bekannt für den Turing-Test und die Turingmaschine, arbeitete ab Ende der 30er Jahre in Bletchley Park an der Entzifferung der mit der Rotor-Chiffriermaschine Enigma verschlüsselten deutschen Funksprüche. Der Landsitz in der Nähe von London war ein wichtiger Sitz von Militär und Geheimdienst. Er spielt in zahlreichen Filmen und Agentenromanen eine zentrale Rolle. Heute befindet sich dort das Nationale Computer-Museum Großbritanniens. Bletchley Park? Genau! Vor wenigen Tagen trafen sich an diesem symbolträchtigen Ort zahlreiche hochrangige Regierungsvertreter aus Europa, den USA und China mit Unternehmern wie Elon Musk und Sam Altman. Mit dabei viele KI-Verantwortliche der Länder, aber auch die unvermeidliche Flut an Lobbyisten. Kamala Harris folgte der Einladung ebenso wie Ursula von der Leyen. Den deutschen Kanzler vertraten Robert Habeck und Volker Wissing als KI-Doppel-Wumms. Eingeladen hatte den illustren Kreis der britische Premier Rishi Sunak. Der erste „AI Safety Summit“ ist für ihn eine Art Coup – denn er hat ambitionierte Pläne für Großbritannien als „wahre“ Heimat der Künstlichen Intelligenz.

While the world is distracted, members of Congress are writing bills designed to steal Russia's money and give it to Ukraine. In this episode, listen to the pitch being made to Congress as we examine if this is a good idea. Please Support Congressional Dish – Quick Links Contribute monthly or a lump sum via Support Congressional Dish via (donations per episode) Send Zelle payments to: Donation@congressionaldish.com Send Venmo payments to: @Jennifer-Briney Send Cash App payments to: $CongressionalDish or Donation@congressionaldish.com Use your bank's online bill pay function to mail contributions to: Please make checks payable to Congressional Dish Thank you for supporting truly independent media! Background Sources Recommended Congressional Dish Episodes Taking the Russian money: is it legal? Lee C. Buchheit and Paul Stephan. October 20, 2023. Lawfare. Chelsey Dulaney and Andrew Duehren. October 11, 2023. The Wall Street Journal. Lawrence H. Summers, Philip Zelikow, and Robert B. Zoellick. June 15, 2023. Foreign Affairs. Paul Stephan. April 26, 2022. Lawfare. Laurence H. Tribe and Jeremy Lewin. April 15, 2022. The New York Times. April 15, 2021. President Joe Biden. White House Briefing Room. What we're being told about Ukraine Secretary of State Anthony Blinken [@SecBlinken]. November 3, 2023. Twitter. Visual Journalism Team. September 29, 2023. BBC News. June 2023. Reuters. Biden wants to hide weapons deals with Israel Sharon Zhang. November 2, 2023. Bills Audio Sources October 31, 2023 Senate Appropriations Committee Witnesses: Antony Blinken, Secretary, U.S. Department of State Lloyd Austin, Secretary, U.S. Department of Defense Clips 1:05:05 Secretary of State Antony Blinken: If you look at total assistance to Ukraine going back to February of 2022, the United States has provided about $75 billion our allies and partners $90 billion. If you look at budget support, the United States has provided about $22 billion during that period, allies and partners $49 billion during that period; military support, we provided about $43 billion allies and partners $33 billion; humanitarian assistance, the United States $2.3 billion allies and partners 4.5 billion, plus another $18 to $20 billion in caring for the many refugees who went to Europe and outside of Ukraine. October 19, 2023 Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (The Helsinki Commission) Witnesses: Eliav Benjamin, Deputy Head of Mission, The Embassy of Israel to the United States Jamil N. Jaffer, Founder and Executive Director, National Security Institute at George Mason University Dr. Jonathan Schanzer, Senior Vice President, Foundation for the Defense of Democracies Dr. Dan Twining, President, International Republican Institute Oksana Markarova, Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States of America Clips 19:25 Eliav Benjamin: Understanding in the most unequivocal manner and in the clearest way that these are evil people. If we can even call them people. This is Israel's 9/11, only if you take the proportion of the size of Israel, this is 9/11 times 10, at least. 20:45 Eliav Benjamin: Because these terrorist organizations are not only against Israelis or against Jews, and not only in Israel, they are against mankind and anything which calls for decency, any entity and anybody who calls for protecting human rights and protecting individuals and protecting civilians. 21:25 Eliav Benjamin: Hamas have no value for human life, while Israel is doing its utmost to protect human life, including Palestinians in Gaza by even calling for them to go down south so that they won't be affected by the war. Hamas is doing everything in its power to harm civilians, to harm its own civilians. And everything that Hamas is committing -- and committed -- is no less than war crimes. And if you want crimes against humanity, and this is while Israel is working within the international human rights law, and within the military law. 28:15 Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN): Ambassador we have attempted to get some monies to from Putin and from the Soviet Un -- the oligarchs, to help rebuild Ukraine. Do you have any new information about that, or concerns? Oksana Markarova: Thank you for this question. First of all, I think it's very just that all this horrible destruction, which only for the first year of the war the World Bank estimated at $411 billion -- just the physical destruction -- has to be compensated and paid for by the Russians. So with regard to the Russian oligarchs and everyone who finances this war, supports this war, thanks to Congress we already have the possibility to confiscate it through the courts and DOJ has already moved forward with one confiscation of malfeasance money -- $5.4 million, and others. It is going to take time. But I think the major question right now to discuss with all the G7 is the Russian sovereign assets. We know that there are at least in the vicinity of 300-400 billion, or maybe even more, frozen by G7 countries. Not only that, but we recently discovered there are about $200 billion that are frozen in the Euroclear system in Belgium. So I'm very glad that there are more renewed talks right now between the G7 Ministers of Finance on how to confiscate and how to better use this money even now. I think we have to join forces there because again, we're very grateful for the American support, we are very much counting on this additional supplementary budget, but at the end of the day, it's not the American, or Ukrainian, or European taxpayers who have to pay for this, it is the Russians who have to pay for their damages. We look forward to working with Congress and we're working very actively with the administration, the State Department and Treasury, on how to better do it. As the former Minister of Finance, I not only believe -- I know -- that it can be done and I know this is a very specific case, that will not jeopardize the untouchability of the Sovereign Money, which is normal in the normal circumstances. This is a very specific case of a country that has been condemned by 154 countries in the UN for the illegal aggression. We have in all three major cases, the cases against Russia on both aggression and genocide and everything else. And it's only natural and just to use the sovereign assets as well as the private assets of Putin's oligarchs to compensate and to pay this. 32:50 Eliav Benjamin: Look at the charter of Hamas, which calls for destruction, annihilation of Jews, of Israel and yes, wants to control everything from the Mediterranean Sea until the Jordan River. 33:00 Eliav Benjamin: That is their aspiration, that is what they want to do, with zero care about civilians, including their own whom they take us human shields. As we're speak now, they're firing rockets from underneath hospitals, from underneath schools, from underneath mosques, from within residential areas, putting their own people at risk and sending them to die as well. This is not what Israel is about, but this is what Hamas is about and has been about. And now once and for all, unfortunately, really unfortunately, it took such a horrific war that they launched on Israel for the whole world to realize what Hamas is really about and what we've been saying for so many years that Hamas stands for. But it's not only Hamas: it's Hamas, it's the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, it's Hezbollah, it's all of these terrorist organizations who have zero care about human beings. This is who we should go after, and make sure they don't do any more harm. 39:10 Jamil Jaffer: It was the single deadliest day in Israel's history, single deadliest day for the worldwide Jewish community since the Holocaust. The equivalent of over a dozen 9/11 attacks on a population adjusted basis. Let me say it again. On the day of the 9/11 attacks, we had about 280 million Americans and we lost approximately 3000 Americans that day. Israel has lost 1400 have their own in a population of approximately 9 million -- over a dozen 9/11 attacks. 41:15 Jamil Jaffer: There's a key connection between these two fights. We know that Iran today supplies all manner of drones to Russia in its fight in Ukraine. We know that Iran has troops on the ground in Ukraine, training Russians on the use of those drones. We know that Iran is considering providing short range ballistic missiles to Russia, in that conflict. Russia, for its part, has provided Iran with its primary source of Conventional Munitions and nuclear technology for the vast majority of the time. Now, the key connection between these organizations is important to note. It's not just Russia and Iran; it's China and North Korea as well. These are all globally repressive nation states. They repress their own people, they hold them back, they give them no opportunity, and then they seek to export that repression to other parts of the globe, first in their immediate neighborhood, and then more broadly across the world. These nations are increasingly working together. We see China and Russia's no-limits partnership. We see President Xi saying to President Putin, in an off hand conversation that the world heard, that there are changes that haven't been seen in 100 years, and Russia and China are leading those changes. We know that for decades, Iran and North Korea have cooperated on ballistic missile and nuclear technology. We know that today in the fight in Gaza, Hamas is using North Korean rocket propelled grenades. So the reality is these globally repressive nation states have long been working together. And it is incumbent upon the United States to stand with our friends in Ukraine and our allies in Israel in this fight against global repression. 41:35 Dr. Dan Twining: It's vital not to mistake Hamas's control of Gaza with legitimacy. There have been no elections in Gaza since 2006. Hamas will not hold them because it thinks it will lose. Polling from September, a month ago, shows that only a quarter of Palestinians support Hamas leading the Palestinian people. Before the conflict, 77% of Palestinians told pollsters they wanted elections as soon as possible. A super majority tells pollsters that Hamas is corrupt. It is a terrorist organization, not a governing authority that seeks better lives for Palestinians. Residents of Gaza suffer poverty, isolation, and violence at its hands. 43:25 Dr. Jonathan Schanzer: Israel has just suffered in Iran-sponsored massacre, Ukraine is struggling to repel Russian forces, and Taiwan watches with grave concern as China threatens to invade. America must view these three embattled democracies as important assets. And it must view these three adversaries as a threat to the US-led world order. As we speak, there is a very real possibility of a regional war erupting in the Middle East. The Islamic Republic of Iran has armed and funded Hamas and Hezbollah along with other factions in the region. Recent reports point to the existence of an Iranian-led nerve center in Beirut that is designed to help these terrorist groups target Israel more efficiently. Fortunately, the IDF has thwarted Iranian efforts to create a new terror proxy in the Golan Heights. Israel has repeatedly destroyed most, if not all, of what Iran is trying to stand up there. However, Iran-backed militias do remain in Syria, and Russia's presence in Syria is complicated all of this. Moscow's missile defense systems have forced Israel to take significant precautions in the ongoing effort to prevent the smuggling of advanced Iranian weapons from Syria to Lebanon. These are precision guided munitions. We've never seen a non-state actor or a terrorist group acquire these before and Russia is making this more difficult. The operations to destroy these weapons in Syria are ongoing. They often take place with Russian knowledge. It's an uneasy arrangement and because of that, the Syrian front is still manageable, but Russia's role in the region is far from positive. Moscow continues to work closely with both Iran and Hezbollah. In fact, Russian-Iranian relations have deepened considerably since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. This goes beyond the sanctions busting that was the basis of their relationship before all this started. Russia has received UAVs from Iran, which we've heard today, Tehran has sent advisors to train Russian personnel, and since last summer, Russia has launched over 2000 Iranian UAVs into Ukraine. Moscow now wants to produce some of these UAVs domestically and so Russia and Iran are currently working together to increase the drones' range and speed. Iran has supplied other material to Russia like artillery shells and rockets. In return, Tehran wants Russia to provide fighter jets, attack helicopters, radar and combat trainer aircraft, and more. Moscow has sent to Tehran some captured Western weapons from Ukraine. These include javelin, NLAW anti-tank guided missiles, and Stinger MANPADS. Amidst all of this, on top of it all, concerns are mounting about a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. Beijing has openly intimidated the island nation. Within a 24 hour time span in July, 16 PLA warships approached Taiwan, accompanied with over 100 different aircraft sorties. China's calculus about an invasion of Taiwan could be influenced heavily right now by what the United States does in Ukraine and in Israel. Ihe landscape is clear: China, Iran and Russia are working together. Our policy must be to deny them the ability to threaten our friends and our interests. 47:45 Dr. Jonathan Schanzer: It's great news. I was gonna recommend it, but it's already happened: the United States has sent two of its Iron Dome batteries based in Guam to Israel, en route already. 52:15 Dr. Dan Twining: If America's three greatest adversaries are going to actively collaborate in armed attacks on our allies, that's all the more reason for us to ensure that friendly democracies prevail in the fight. Giving Ukraine and Israel what they need to restore their sovereignty and security is essential. Appeasing aggression in one theater only invites belligerence in another. Make no mistake, China is watching our reaction to the wars on Ukraine and Israel with great interest. If we don't show the will and staying power to help our friends win, we only embolden Chinese designs in Asia. Defeating aggression in Europe and the Middle East is central to deterring aggression in Asia. 1:09:55 Dr. Jonathan Schanzer: I am going to use the current crisis right now to sort of explain how America can get a win. That attack by Hamas was sponsored by Iran. Hamas is an Iran-back terrorist organization that also enjoys the support of China and Russia. As Israel has now readied to go into the Gaza Strip and to destroy this terrorist organization with the support of the United States, we're now seeing Iran-backed proxies threaten a much wider war. We're watching Hezbollah and Lebanon, Shiite militias in Syria, potentially other groups in other parts of the region. What needs to happen here right now is America needs to determine the outcome of this conflict. And by that, I mean it needs to deter Iran, it needs to deter Hezbollah and any other actor that might intervene, and force them to watch helplessly as our ally destroys Hamas. Watch them look on helplessly as one of their important pieces is removed from the chessboard. If we can do that, then I think we're now in the process of reestablishing deterrence after having lost it for many years. 1:14:15 Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI): Along with Ranking Member [Jim] Risch, I'm the lead on the what we call the REPO Act, which would authorize the President to work with other countries in Europe that are also home to frozen Russian sovereign assets, and create a procedure for seizing those assets and directing them to Ukraine to be used for rebuilding and other purposes. I think there are mixed feelings in the administration about this, but they seem to be moving our way. I'd love to have your thoughts on the value of grabbing those sovereign assets, not just as additional resources for Ukraine, but also as a powerful signal to Putin that his behavior is going to have real punishment and hitting him good and hard right in the wallet, I think, would be a good added signal. 1:15:20 Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI): The second is simply to make sure that we do a better job of grabbing Russian oligarch assets. We have a predicament right now, which is that if you're a US citizen, and you're driving down the highway and you've got $400,000 in unexplained cash in your car, the police can pull you over and they can seize that. If you are a foreign, Russian, crooked oligarch, and you have a $400 million yacht someplace, you have more rights than that American citizen, in terms of defending your yacht. It's a very simple procedure, it's called "in rem." You move on the yacht rather than having to chase through all the ownership structures. And I would very much like to see us pass a bill that allows us to proceed against foreign oligarchs', criminals', and kleptocrats' assets in rem. 1:16:50 Dr. Jonathan Schanzer: The seizing of assets and redirecting them to Ukraine, I think, sounds like a solid thing for the United States to do. I think, though, it would make sense to do this with a coalition of countries. So that the US is not singled out -- Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI): That's what the legislation requires. In fact, the bulk of the funds are actually held in European countries, so acting on our own would not be sensible. Dr. Jonathan Schanzer: It wouldn't be effective, correct. So getting the Europeans on board, and by the way, getting the Europeans to chip in a bit more, just as we are, I think is also a very sound policy. As far as targeting the oligarch assets, I fully understand your frustration. When I worked at the Treasury Department trying to track those kinds of assets was never easy. We did work with a sort of shorthand version of, if we're 80% sure that we know what we're dealing with we're going to move first and then adjudicate after it's been done. And by and large, that worked out very well during the height of the war on terror. And there was an urgency that I think needs to be felt now, as we think about targeting Russian assets too. 1:18:00 Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI): To follow me on my path of in rem Latinate legal terms. There's also qui tam out there, which allows individuals to bring fraud actions in the name of the United States, and if it turns out there really is fraud, they get a share of it. It would be nice to have people who work for, let's say, a Russian oligarch to be able to be paid a bit of a bounty if they come in and testify and say, "Yep, definitely his boat every time we go out, he's on it. Every time the guests come they're his guests and we call him boss." Things like that can make a big difference, so we're trying to push that as well. Dr. Jonathan Schanzer: That sounds like something for the Rewards for Justice program at the State Department. They might be able to expand it. We already have bounties for those that provide evidence leading to arrests of terrorists, why not oligarchs? Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI): Correct. 1:24:40 Dr. Jonathan Schanzer: Qatar has, for the last 10 or 12 years, had a an external headquarters. Some of [Hamas's] political leadership has been based there: Ismail Haniyeh and Khaled Meshaal both call Qatar home. Of course, this is not new for the Qataris. They've also hosted all manner of other terrorist organizations in that country. It's the Taliban, al Qaeda, ISIS. It's well known at this point that Qatar is a hospitable place. They just don't agree with our definition of terrorism. Fundraising takes place there, all sorts of organizational activities take place there, and people are free to come and go. It is a safe haven for them. It is extremely dangerous that we have bestowed upon that country the label of major non-NATO ally, and that this is allowed to continue. They're offering right now their "good offices" -- I'll put those in air quotes -- to try to negotiate the release of the 302 hostages. This is not in Qatar's is interest. They are advocating on behalf of Hamas, as they have been for a long time. This should not be allowed to stand. 1:28:10 Dr. Jonathan Schanzer: Hezbollah is based in Lebanon primarily, although they've got a significant base of operations in Latin America right now, and of course they've got a lot of operatives running around in Tehran. They are a wholly-owned subsidiary of the regime in Iran. Just to give you a sense of the threat, right now Hezbollah is threatening to open up a second front with Israel. While the fighting rages in Gaza, in the north of Israel there is a second front that could very well be open. There have been dozens of rockets that have been fired, dozens of anti-tank missiles infiltrations into northern Israel. This is very disconcerting. This is one of the things that I think the President is trying to deter at this moment, to deter a second front from opening. Hezbollah is considered to have an army that is equal in strength to the average European army. It has 150,000 rockets right now facing south at Israel. It's got precision guided munitions that could hit strategic targets, like Israel's nuclear facility, or like its chemical plant. These are things that could create catastrophic attacks, and we could be hours or days or weeks away from watching those threats materialize. And so this is why it is imperative right now that the US mount the deterrence that is necessary to stare down Iran and to stare down Hezbollah and to allow Israel to be able to do what it needs to in Gaza and hopefully end this crisis. 1:31:15 Rep. Marc Veasey (D-TX): What does it look like if a Palestinian family of four is being interviewed for safe passage into a neighboring country or nearby country? What exactly does that look like? What does that processing and that vetting look like? Dr. Jonathan Schanzer: I'm going to make a suggestion here. I don't know how that kind of vetting can happen. You know, you're looking at a territory roughly the size of Washington DC, with 2.2 million people that had been subjected to Hamas rule for 16 years. How you start to figure out who's okay and who's not at this stage in the game, who's a threat and who isn't, is going to be really challenging. I wrote a piece in the Wall Street Journal with a colleague of mine, Mark Dubowitz, our CEO, on Monday. I want to make this suggestion: I've already identified a number of the countries that have been Hamas supporters over the years, those that have financed and provided the weapons and the training to Hamas. I think there should be significant pressure on those countries to take in the refugees. Have a clear message from the United States that they created this problem, and it is now their problem to take care of these 2 million people. Quite frankly, I don't care who's radicalized when they go to these countries that have been supporting a radical cause for as long as they have. I think this would be justice. October 18, 2023 House Committee on Foreign Affairs Witnesses: Philip Zelikow, Senior Fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution and White Burkett Miller Professor of History at the University of Virginia Rebeccah Heinrichs, Senior Fellow and Director of the Keystone Defense Initiative at the Hudson Institute Clips 14:35 Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX): The Russian sovereign assets is a winner in my judgment. If we can tap into the right -- the very people who started this war and this conflict, in my judgment, should be paying for the cost, and not as much the US taxpayer. And that's why I introduced the REPO Act, the bipartisan, bicameral legislation that demands that the Biden administration transfer frozen Russian sovereign assets to the Ukraine effort. It's beyond time that Russia pay for the war that it created. My bill prohibits the Biden administration from unfreezing Russian sovereign assets until Russia ends its unprovoked war of aggression and agrees to compensate Ukraine for the damages it has inflicted. 16:05 Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX): To be clear, the war crimes and genocide committed by Russia cannot be reversed by money alone. 22:30 Rep. French Hill (R-AK): My approach was crafted to be consistent with US Policy and International Law by amending the International Emergency Economic Powers Act IEEPA, and using its established framework and existing definitions. As a former Treasury official, in my view, this is a better legislative approach. This is consistent with well established international precedent, whereby the United States work with international partners to establish a fund like we saw in Afghanistan in 2022. The Iran-US Claims Tribunal in 1981, the UN compensation fund for Kuwait in 1991, following the invasion by Iraq. 22:40 Rep. French Hill (R-AK): I too have introduced a bill on this topic, HR 5370. And I appreciate the Foreign Affairs staff working with me on that. My bill would give the President authority to seize and transfer title of Russian sovereign assets within the United States jurisdiction into an international fund for the sole purpose of Ukraine's eventual reconstruction and humanitarian relief. I'm grateful to Chairman McCaul and I co-sponsor his bill on this topic, as well for his leadership. 24:10 Rep. French Hill (R-AK): Considering most Russian sovereign assets are actually located outside the United States, it's important for our partners and allies around the world to introduce and pass similar companion legislation rather than having the US act unilaterally. 24:30 Rep. French Hill (R-AK): Let me be clear, I consider Russian Federation sovereign assets inclusive of all state owned enterprise assets and those of Russian publicly traded companies, like Gazprom, that are controlled by more than 50% by the Russian Federation. 26:30 Philip Zelikow: Economic warfare is the real center of gravity in this war. Economic warfare is the center of gravity in the war. I know we all watch the daily updates from the battle front lines. You know, this movement here, that movement there. This is a war of attrition. It's going to be decided by economic and industrial staying power as the war continues almost certainly into 2025 and perhaps beyond. 27:00 Philip Zelikow: In that struggle, the economic warfare against Russia has achieved some gains, and will have some more gains over the long haul. Russia's economic warfare against Ukraine has been devastating and is not sufficiently appreciated. Ukraine lost 30% of its GDP in the first year of the war. 1/3 of the population of Ukraine is displaced, half externally half internally. Russia is waging economic warfare on three main fronts. It's destroying Ukraine's infrastructure, and will do another energy infrastructure war this winter, for which it's gearing up, including with North Korean weapons and Iranian weapons. Point two: they've destroyed Ukraine's ability to export through the Black Sea except for a trickle, which was the fundamental business model of a commodity exporting country. Point three: they have destroyed Ukraine's civil aviation. Ukraine has no civil aviation. Any of you who've traveled, as I have, to Ukraine will notice that you can't fly in the country, which makes travel and business in the country now back to the era of the railroads before there were airplanes. So the the Russian economic warfare against Ukraine is devastating. And as time passes, this is going to have deep effects on the ability of Ukraine's economy and society to hold together, which will play out politically. So point one: economic warfare is the true center of gravity in the war. 28:35 Philip Zelikow: Two, the Russian assets are the key strategy to change the outcome. The Russian assets are at least $280 billion. Now, even in our debased day and age, that's a lot of money. It's a lot of money in the context of the Ukrainian economy. Even using very conservative multipliers of how much private investment the public investment can unlock, let's say one to one, the impact of this money on the whole future prospects of Ukraine and its staying power are decisive. Otherwise, they're relying on US and European taxpayers whose readiness you can gauge. So this is potentially the decisive fulcrum of the economic warfare and Ukraine's prospects in the war. 29:25 Philip Zelikow: So, third point, why has this been so hard? First reason was there was a knee jerk neuralgia on the part of bankers and financiers to the actual confiscation of Russian assets in the foreign exchange holdings, with much talk of losing confidence in the dollar in the euro. On analysis, these worries quickly fall away, which is one reason that I worked with my colleagues, Larry Summers, the former Treasury secretary, and Bob Zoellick, the former president of the World Bank, who do know something about international finance to debunk those concerns. And I'd be glad to go into more detail about why the concerns about the dollar or the euro turn out to be overblown when they're analyzed. 30:10 Philip Zelikow: The other concern was how do we do this legally? There's been a ton of legal confusion about this. This bill will help dispel that legal confusion. 30:30 Philip Zelikow: What about sovereign immunity? Sovereign immunity is a doctrine that only exists in the context of national courts trying to usurp sovereign authority in a situation where it's sovereign on sovereign, whereas in this bill, there would be an act of state that goes after Russian sovereign property. There is no such thing as immunity; there is no doctrine of sovereign immunity. Ordinarily, under international law, if one sovereign takes another sovereign's property, then the loser is entitled to compensation for that nationalization or expropriation. So why isn't Russia entitled for that compensation in this case? Because it's a lawful state countermeasure. Countermeasures are different from sanctions. And countermeasures -- and this is a well recognized body of law -- you are allowed to do things that would ordinarily violate your sovereign obligations to a fellow sovereign, because that sovereign has committed such extreme outlaw behavior, that the countermeasure is a lawful recourse. And that is exactly the extreme case we have here. There is a well codified body of law on this, and Russia has hit every one of the marks for a set of lawful state countermeasures that deprives them of any right to compensation when states take their money and then use it, putting it in escrow to compensate the victims of Russia's aggression. 37:35 Rebeccah Heinrichs: The United States directly benefits from Ukraine's battlefield successes as Russia remains a top tier adversary of the United States. These are the weapons that Americans made and designed specifically to go after the kinds of things that the Ukrainians are destroying in the Russian military. 39:55 Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX): The EU has a plan just to tax frozen assets and send those proceeds to Ukraine. Our Treasury Secretary, Miss Yellen recently claimed that transferring sovereign assets to Ukraine was not legal. Do you agree with that, and if not, what is your opinion from a legal standpoint? Philip Zelikow: I think Secretary Yellen has now revised her view of this matter, having had a chance to be informed by some of the legal work that's been done since she first made that impromptu remark. There is the legal authority both under domestic law and international law, and the bill this committee is considering would reaffirm, consolidate, and elaborate that authority. So legally, this can be done. 40:55 Philip Zelikow: What the EU came up with in May was the idea -- they were encountering a lot of resistance to actually taking the Russian money, so they said, Well, can we come up with something, since a lot of these as the securities have now matured and are in cash and Euroclear, mainly -- the clearing house in Brussels -- is now managing the cash on behalf of Russia, because Russia is no longer able to manage it. So can we do something with the interest? And by the way, the EU couldn't get that through in June. Ursula von der Leyen couldn't get that adopted over, principally, French and German opposition at the time. So they're talking about just taking this interest. As a legal matter, if you have the legal right to take the interest, you have the legal right to take the principle. This was a cosmetic idea trying to overcome the opposition they had there. It's kind of a situation where, as one of my colleagues in this effort, Larry Tribe, has put it as well, instead of crossing the Rubicon, they're kind of wading in. From a legal point of view, it's actually clearer to do the transfer for Ukraine than to try to expropriate the money using tax authorities, which makes it look like you're expropriating it for your country, rather than for the benefit of the victims, which is a much cleaner, legal way to do it. So they ended up, for political reasons, with a half measure that takes only a tiny fraction of what they should and does so in ways that are actually legally awkward. I understand why they are where they are, but as they process this, I think they're just going to have to step up to going ahead and crossing the Rubicon. 50:20 Philip Zelikow: The whole argument that I made in an article with Summers and Zoellick in Foreign Affairs is that actually, this is a strategy for victory. You put this enormous war chest and the multiplier of private investment into play. And what you can envision is a whole new European recovery program, anchored on the rebuilding of Ukraine that not only saves Ukraine, revitalizes it, but links it to the EU accession process, to the enlargement of the European Union. In other words, to the victory of the whole cause of freedom, in a way almost regardless of where the final battle line ends up being in Ukraine, Ukraine will be growing with bright prospects, part of a Europe with brighter prospects, because of its alignment with the free world. 51:25 Philip Zelikow: When people worry about the significance of this in foreign exchange, I ask them to just remember two numbers 93 and three. If you look at the percentage of foreign exchange holdings held in the world today, 60% United States, 23% Euro, 6% yen, 4% Sterling: that's 93. The percentage of foreign exchange holdings in Chinese renminbi: three. And the Chinese were really encouraged that it's gone up from 2.5 to 3 in recent years. So when you look at 93 to three, that's what you get when we work with our allies in a concerted economic strategy. We can move on the Russian assets, and there's really no choice except to stick with the currencies of the free world because they're still the only basis for being a participant in the world economy. 54:20 Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-MI): Who actually has the authority to take possession of it? Because as you point out, if you've got the legal right to the interest, you got the legal right to the principal. Who is granted that authority? And then who is granted the authority to distribute that? Philip Zelikow: So the theory is that the national governments can transfer any of the Russian state assets in their jurisdiction into escrow accounts for the benefit of the victims, as a state countermeasure to Russia's aggression. So the way that would work is under the President's IEEPA authority, he could transfer all this -- and there are precedents for this -- into an escrow account held in the States and then an international escrow account, with this limited purpose of compensating the victims of Russian aggression, then you need to create an international mechanism, which the US would participate in creating, to then manage that distribution, which needs to have a proactive urgent speed of relevance. Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-MI): That was what I was afraid of. If it just simply takes one participant to bog the whole thing down, guess what? It's not going to work, in my humble opinion. Philip Zelikow: When they're debating this in the EU, some people say we should have a new EU directive to govern this, but under our Common Foreign and Security Policy, one member like Hungary, for example, could botch that. So if you create something perhaps managed by the G7 Donor Coordination Platform, that is a relatively simple instrument in which the United States could play a part. One thing that you've done in the bill you've drafted, Mr. Chairman and Congresswoman Kaptur, is you're creating mechanisms in which Congress has insight and some oversight into how the United States participates in that process, and what the mechanism does and how the money is spent, which I think is an appropriate role for the Congress. There are precedents for how to do this. The design of this international mechanism I'm discussing is both policy driven, but also has a reactive claim side, but can have some conditionality on reform and the EU accession process. That's a heavy lift. Building that mechanism will be the biggest job since we built the Economic Cooperation Administration to run Marshall Plan aid 70 years ago. That serious work has not really begun, because we're just working on the preliminary phase of mobilizing and using this money. 58:25 Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA): You believe the Administration, even without this bill, has authority right now to transfer the frozen Russian assets to Ukraine. Philip Zelikow: Yes, it does. It has it under the existing IEEPA authorities that the President has already invoked. The Renew Democracy Initiative has put out a really extensive legal brief that goes into great detail about this. I think actually the administration's lawyers are coming around to the view that yes, they do have the authority under existing law. What the REPO Act does is, one, it reaffirms that, but two, it makes Congress a partner in this with regulation and oversight that's an appropriate Congressional role. So by both reaffirming the authority and getting Congress to join the executive and doing this together I think it makes it a truly national effort with an appropriate Congressional part. 59:20 Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA): How would you respond to critics who say this would make it harder for other folks in the future to want to invest in the United States? Philip Zelikow: You can look at the numbers. After we froze Russian assets, everybody understood the political risks that might be involved with putting their money into dollar holdings. The Chinese called in all their bankers and asked them, "Do we have any other options?" That happened last year. You can just simply track what's happened in the international financial markets and see how folks have now priced in that political risk. But the result is still very strong demand and interest in the dollar. But here again, to come back to Congressman [Gregory] Meeks point, by working with the Euro and the yen and Sterling, we give them no place to go. If they want to participate in the world economy, then they're just going to have to invest in assets like that. 1:00:30 Rebeccah Heinrichs: The other thing that's very interesting and good in the REPO bill that is different is this provision, Section 103, that would prohibit the release of blocked Russian sovereign assets. I think that's an incredibly important element of this bill. That would remove the temptation for any kind of sweetener for the Russians to have access to these funds and leave Ukraine in a lurch whenever they have to rebuild their society. That's a very important part of the bill. 1:01:10 Rep. Nathaniel Moran (R-TX): Why would it be better to transfer these assets for Ukraine's direct benefit than to use them for leverage in negotiations and ending this conflict at some point? Rebeccah Heinrichs: It comes back down to the fundamental question at the end: who's going to foot the bill for rebuilding Ukrainian society? Somebody's going to have to do it. It should not be the American people primarily. They're footing a pretty significant bill. I think that benefits American industry and benefits our own military, but this particular piece should be carried out by the perpetrators of this act. So I think that it'd be a mistake to hold that out as a sweetener to get the Russians to come to the end or the conclusion. 1:01:55 Rep. Nathaniel Moran (R-TX): Mr. Zelikow, you mentioned earlier in response to one of my colleague's questions that it looks like that under current law under the IEEPA authorities, the president can do this activity now. Do you know why the President is not doing that? And if he chose to do that, could he do it immediately? Or is there any delay in that? Philip Zelikow: They could act immediately. They've delayed a long time, partly, to be very blunt -- because I've been talking to a lot of people about this -- they had very deep interagency disagreements inside the administration over how to proceed and they found that their bandwidth was totally overwhelmed by other Ukrainian-related concerns, and they didn't give this heavy attention until fairly recently. And now that they have given it sustained attention, I think the President has actually settled, at a fundamental level, those interagency disputes and they are now moving forward to try to find a way to make this work. 1:02:50 Philip Zelikow: I think the point you raised a minute ago about whether we want to hold this back as leverage was one factor in the back of the minds of some people. I think as the war has continued on through this year, hopes of a quick settlement of the war have dissipated. I think they realize that this is going to be a long war. That sobering realization has kind of sunk in. Also, from a legal point of view, if you want to, you could credit the Russians in any peace negotiation. You can basically say this is a credit against your liability for the for rebuilding Ukraine. 1:04:55 Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-PA): As a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, we have been to many European nations. To a nation, they say the United States is the indispensable partner here, and they say that with all humility and not blowing smoke. We visited the Hague and sat with lead prosecutor Khan, and everyone is talking about waiting us out. Not just waiting out Congress's support, but waiting out the outcome of the next election. They asked us specifically about that. Mr. Putin is clearly waiting for the outcome of the next election in hopes that it will not be the reelection of Joe Biden, who I'm really proud is in Israel right now. Timing. How does this work? You already said it's going to be into 2025. How do we use this leverage, this economic warfare as the center of gravity in this conflict, to bring the timing tighter to a successful conclusion for Ukraine? Philip Zelikow: So that's a great question. And this is why action on this issue is so urgent now, because the operational timeline to stand this up on a massive multi 100 billion dollar scale is if we move on this in the next couple of months and mobilize the money. We could get an enormous operation up and running with a relatively secure source of funding by next year. If we get that up and running by the middle of next year, we then insulate ourselves, to some extent, against the kind of electoral risk to which you gently alluded. 1:07:55 Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. (R-NJ): If the United States did transfer Russian sovereign assets to Ukraine, how could Ukraine best use these in the near term? Philip Zelikow: In the near term, what they would do, I think, is begin undertaking a comprehensive program to shore up their infrastructure, withstand the coming Russian campaigns to further damage that and begin to rebuild the basic transportation infrastructure and other things that can then begin to unlock a really bright future for the rest of the Ukrainian economy. There are things that can be done then to move Ukrainian industry into new sectors. I think the Ukrainian goal is not just to restore what they had five years ago, but actually to use this as a way to build back better, to imagine a brighter future in partnership with Europe. And then if the money is managed well, this gives leverage to encourage the Ukrainian reform process as part of the EU accession. Putin's whole effort here is, "if I can't conquer Ukraine, I will wreck it and make it ungovernable," and we'll show decisively that that objective cannot be achieved. 1:10:35 Rebeccah Heinrichs: If I may, sir, another principle that has been misunderstood throughout this conflict is this notion of escalation. Escalation is not bad. It's only bad if it's the adversary who's escalating to prevail. We want Ukraine to escalate to win, to convince the Russians to end the war. If you do not permit the Ukrainians to escalate, then you only have a long protracted war of attrition that none of us can afford. 1:12:05 Philip Zelikow: Whenever you do a large thing in international affairs, there are going to be unintended consequences from that, and rather than be dismissive about that concern, I'll say if you embark on this, then people will be tempted to try to use these sorts of precedents against us. They'll be limited in their ability to do that because of the fundamental places where money is held in the world economy. A lot of people don't do business with the United States because they love us; they do business with us because they think it's necessary. If they could expropriate our property with no penalty, they would. Venezuela tried that. Most of the world doesn't want to follow Venezuela's example. So yes, there are some potential unintended consequences of people trying to use this precedent. But one reason we've tried to set this under international law is to use the standards of international law to govern this countermeasure. International law allows these countermeasures, but it says you can only do this if the target country's outlaw behavior is extreme, and there's a standard for that. It turns out Russia totally meets that standard. This is the most extreme case of international aggression since the Second World War, bigger than Korea, bigger than Kuwait. But by setting that kind of standard, it makes that slippery slope a little less slippery. 1:14:25 Rep. Greg Stanton (D-AZ): There are some concerns that if we were to transfer these assets, use it for the benefit Ukraine, would there be an impact on the US dollar? Just get your thoughts on that? Philip Zelikow: Yeah, that's why we got in some of the best people we could on international plans, just to do the analysis on that. 93% of the foreign exchange holdings are held in G7 countries and only 3% in renminbi. Running to the renminbi because they're worried about the dollar is something people would do if they wanted to do it already. They've already priced in the political risk of dollar holdings after they've seen what we've done. And you can see their asset allocations. Now, the dollar is involved in 88% of all foreign commercial transactions on one side of the transaction or another. So it's hard to run away from it, especially if the Euro, Yen, and Sterling are in there with you. There's really kind of no place to go if you want to participate in the international economy. Working with Larry Summers, the former Treasury Secretary, Robert Zoellick, with Brad Setser, who studies international finance, we ran some numbers about worst case scenarios and so on, and we think that concern, which sounds good as a soundbite, it turns out on analysis, it fades away. 1:16:10 Philip Zelikow: The US only holds a fraction of the relevant Russian money because the Russians tried to get their money out of our jurisdiction. But when you go to Europe and ask them what's holding them up, they all say "We're waiting for the American lead." So even though we may only hold a fraction of the money, we hold a lot more than a fraction of the relevant clout, and we need to go together, exactly as you imply. September 28, 2023 House Committee on Foreign Affairs Witnesses: Victoria Nuland, Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, United States Department of State Christopher P. Maier, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict, United States Department of Defense Caroline Krass, General Counsel, United States Department of Defense Richard C. Visek, Acting Legal Adviser, United States Department of State Clips 33:00 Victoria Nuland: First with regard to the Taliban, we've been very clear we're going to judge the Taliban by their actions. It is our assessment that the Taliban have partially adhered to their counterterrorism commitments. We've seen them disrupt ISIS-K, for example. But there's obviously plenty more to to do to ensure that Afghanistan doesn't become a safe haven, or return to safe haven, or persist as a safe haven. That said, I would note that the director of the National Counterterrorism Center Christy Abizaid recently said publicly that al Qaeda is at its historic nadir in Afghanistan, and its revival is unlikely. 34:20 Victoria Nuland: Iran is obviously a state sponsor of terrorism; it is the leading state sponsor of terrorism in the world. Music by Editing Production Assistance

This week the prime minister hosted his landmark AI summit at Bletchley Park which wrapped up with an interview with Elon Musk, who warned that AI will one day render all jobs obsolete. The who's who of AI were in attendance over the two days as well the likes of Kamala Harris and Ursula von der Leyen, but what was actually achieved? Oscar Edmondson speaks to James Heale and Madhumita Murgia, AI editor at the Financial Times. 

L'intelligence artificielle (IA) est capable de formidables avancées en médecine, dans la conquête spatiale ou encore dans la compréhension de notre planète. Mais elle fait aussi peur, comme en témoigne le sommet qui a eu cette semaine à Bletchley Park, à Londres, en présence d'Elon Musk, de Sam Altman, mais également de nombreux responsables politiques. Reste une question brûlante : faut-il s'en remettre à l'open source qui permet à chacun de comprendre, mais aussi de s'emparer de l'IA ?

China asume la presidencia del Consejo de Seguridad de la ONU y se fija como prioridad resolver el “conflicto” entre Israel y Hamás. La presidenta de la CE, Ursula von der Leyen, ha concluido su gira por los Balcanes en Bosnia donde ha pedido que siga unida para poder entrar en la UE. Cerca de 30 países, entre ellos EEUU, China y la UE firman una Declaración para un desarrollo seguro de la inteligencia artificial.

Hace poco más de un mes la presidenta de la Comisión Europea, Ursula von der Leyen, compareció ante la prensa para anunciar que, tras efectuar una investigación en el sector de los vehículos eléctricos, habían descubierto que los que provienen de China están subsidiados de forma directa o indirecta, algo expresamente prohibido por la legislación comunitaria. Von der Leyen fue explícita y evitó a propósito el lenguaje diplomático. Aseguró que "los mercados mundiales están inundados de coches eléctricos chinos más baratos y su precio se mantiene artificialmente bajo gracias a enormes subvenciones estatales. Eso está distorsionando nuestro mercado. Y como no aceptamos esta distorsión desde dentro de nuestro mercado, tampoco la aceptamos desde fuera". La Comisión Europea tiene competencia para fijar la política comercial del bloque comunitario y, precisamente por eso, de forma periódica abre investigaciones sobre los bienes procedentes del extranjero para saber si su fabricación está subsidiada, algo que les daría una ventaja y perjudicaría a los fabricantes europeos. Esto es lo que parece estar sucediendo con los vehículos eléctricos de fabricación china que, de un tiempo a esta parte, han inundado el mercado europeo. Esto es algo que se venía denunciando desde hace tiempo por parte de la industria y la razón, en definitiva, por la que la Comisión efectuó esta investigación. Las subvenciones que reciben las empresas automotrices chinas no son fáciles de rastrear ya que adoptan diferentes formas. Puede tratarse de préstamos a bajo interés, beneficios fiscales o subsidios directos. En China, según se desprende de este informe, se utilizan los tres modos y eso ha conseguido que sus vehículos eléctricos sean sustancialmente más baratos que los fabricados en Europa. China tiene la ventaja adicional de que ocupa una posición dominante en la extracción y proceso de materias primas necesarias para fabricar baterías, minerales como el litio, el cobalto, el níquel y el manganeso. El resultado es que las corporaciones chinas controlan a placer la cadena de suministro completa. El resultado ha sido la proliferación de marcas chinas en Europa donde, dentro de poco más de diez años ya no se podrán fabricar vehículos de combustión interna. Es un mercado muy interesante ya que es grande, la renta de los consumidores es elevada y el arancel muy bajo, de sólo el 10% frente al 27,5% que aplica Estados Unidos o el 70% de la India. Pero Europa se encuentra ante un dilema. Por un lado, las autoridades desean la descarbonización completa del sector en pocos años, pero, por otro, aún no puede aún igualar la capacidad de fabricación de uno de los elementos fundamentales de cualquier vehículo eléctrico: la batería. Ahí el dominio chino es total. Las empresas de aquel país han realizado grandes inversiones en los últimos años, lo que las coloca en una posición de dominio que las corporaciones europeas no podrán igualar en mucho tiempo. Esto tiene una derivada todavía más preocupante. En tanto que los vehículos eléctricos son grandes computadoras móviles, la preponderancia china en el sector puede suponer una amenaza para la seguridad nacional. Los fabricantes pueden instalar puertas traseras o introducir malware a través de la carga. Todas las grandes empresas chinas de fabricación de baterías están vinculadas directamente con el Partido Comunista chino. Más allá del precio, sólo saber eso ya debería ser motivo de preocupación. En La ContraRéplica: - Emigración africana a Europa - Ola yihadista · Canal de Telegram: https://t.me/lacontracronica · “Hispanos. Breve historia de los pueblos de habla hispana”… https://amzn.to/428js1G · “La ContraHistoria de España. Auge, caída y vuelta a empezar de un país en 28 episodios”… https://amzn.to/3kXcZ6i · “Lutero, Calvino y Trento, la Reforma que no fue”… https://amzn.to/3shKOlK · “La ContraHistoria del comunismo”… https://amzn.to/39QP2KE Apoya La Contra en: · Patreon... https://www.patreon.com/diazvillanueva · iVoox... https://www.ivoox.com/podcast-contracronica_sq_f1267769_1.html · Paypal... https://www.paypal.me/diazvillanueva Sígueme en: · Web... https://diazvillanueva.com · Twitter... https://twitter.com/diazvillanueva · Facebook... https://www.facebook.com/fernandodiazvillanueva1/ · Instagram... https://www.instagram.com/diazvillanueva · Linkedin… https://www.linkedin.com/in/fernando-d%C3%ADaz-villanueva-7303865/ · Flickr... https://www.flickr.com/photos/147276463@N05/?/ · Pinterest... https://www.pinterest.com/fernandodiazvillanueva Encuentra mis libros en: · Amazon... https://www.amazon.es/Fernando-Diaz-Villanueva/e/B00J2ASBXM #FernandoDiazVillanueva #vehiculoelectrico #china Escucha el episodio completo en la app de iVoox, o descubre todo el catálogo de iVoox Originals

Der britische Premierminister Rishi Sunak hat einen Gipfel zur Sicherheit und Risiken von Künstlicher Intelligenz (KI) ins Leben gerufen.  Zwei Tage lang diskutieren wichtige Persönlichkeiten aus Politik und der Tech-Branche wie Unternehmer Elon Musk, US-Vize Kamala Harris oder EU-Kommissionspräsidentin Ursula von der Leyen. Die Schweiz wird vertreten durch Bundesrat Albert Rösti. Hauptthema wird die Gefahr von Künstlicher Intelligenz sein. Doch das KI-Treffen wird auch kritisiert. Es handle sich vor allem um einen PR-Event. Was also bringt dieses Treffen? Cornelia Diethelm, Expertin für Digitale Ethik, vom Centre for Digital Responsibilty erklärt, warum sie nicht allzu viel von diesem KI-Treffen erwartet und wo die EU und die Schweiz in Sachen Regulierung von KI stehen. Eine Auslegeordnung zu den grössten Rechtsunsicherheiten bei KI findet ihr hier. Wo habt ihr bereits Berührungspunkte mit künstlicher Intelligenz? Und welche Befürchtungen habt ihr, wenn ihr an KI denkt? Und wie gut spricht unsere bereits KI Schweizerdeutsch? Eure Inputs sind willkommen auf 076 320 10 37 oder newsplus@srf.ch.

European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen vowed to bring the economies of the Western Balkans and the European Union 'closer' on Monday as she began a four-day tour of the region. Her plan includes a €6 billion investment package, to be delivered on condition the countries make reforms to open up their economies, overcome their conflicts and modernize their administrations. Professor James Ker-Lindsay, who has written extensively on the EU, the Balkans and Southeast Europe, joins Thanos Davelis to break down whether this is a window of opportunity  to reinvigorate the EU accession process for the Western Balkans.You can read the articles we discuss on our podcast here:Von der Leyen vows to bring Western Balkan and EU economies 'closer' as four-day visit startsEU to help Western Balkans reforms with 6 billion euro package - von der LeyenCyprus talks to EU, neighbours on humanitarian corridor for GazaChristodoulides' bold plan for Gaza welcomed by World LeadersGreece turning into energy and technology hub

The World Health Organization warns that civilians in Gaza face a looming health crisis, Ursula von der Leyen continues her Balkans tour and we hear from The Netherlands' ambassador for the Arctic. Plus: is the future of the pharmacy in jeopardy and how is climate change affecting cheesemakers?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Corridoi umanitari per la popolazione di Gaza, condanna ferma di Hamas, una conferenza di pace per il popolo palestinese e perchè l'Autorità palestinese possa realmente governare. Il Consiglio Ue torna anche a parlare di economia:"L'anno prossimo torneremo al meccanismo regolare" della gover