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Russia, China look to advance agendas at BRICS summit of developing countries in South Africa

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:10 GMT

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Russia and China will look to gain more political and economic ground in the developing world at a summit in South Africa this week, when an expected joint dose of anti-West grumbling from them may take on a sharper edge with a formal move to bring Saudi Arabia closer.Leaders from the BRICS economic bloc of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa will hold three days of meetings in Johannesburg’s financial district of Sandton, with Chinese premier Xi Jinping’s attendance underlining the diplomatic capital his country has invested in the bloc over the last decade-and-a-bit as an avenue for its ambitions.Russian President Vladimir Putin will appear on a video link after his travel to South Africa was complicated by an International Criminal Court arrest warrant against him over the war in Ukraine. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will be at the summit alo...

More hearings begin soon for Summit’s proposed CO2 pipeline. Where does the project stand?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:10 GMT

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Public utility regulators in Iowa will begin a hearing Tuesday on a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline for transporting emissions of the climate-warming greenhouse gas for storage underground that has been met by resistant landowners who fear the taking of their land and dangers of a pipeline rupture.Summit Carbon Solutions’ proposed $5.5 billion, 2,000-mile pipeline network would carry CO2 from 34 ethanol plants in five states to North Dakota for storage deep underground — a project involving carbon capture technology, which has attracted both interest and scrutiny in the U.S.North Dakota regulators earlier this month denied a siting permit for Summit’s proposed route in the state, citing myriad issues they say Summit didn’t appropriately address, such as cultural resource impacts, geologic instability and landowner concerns. On Friday, Summit petitioned regulators to reconsider. Other similar projects are proposed around the country, including...

Zimbabwe’s president, a former guerrilla fighter known as ‘the crocodile,’ is seeking reelection

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:10 GMT

HARARE, Zimbabwe — ## Scheduled to move Monday August 21 0600 GMT with photos and video. Initial edit by Gerald Imray. ##HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa is a former guerrilla fighter and bodyguard who responded to being fired as vice president by unseating Robert Mugabe, his own mentor and one of the world’s longest-ruling leaders, in a coup.Mnangagwa is now seeking reelection for a second term as president in a vote this week that could see the ruling ZANU-PF party extend its 43-year hold on power in the southern African nation struggling under international sanctions. Zimbabwe has been governed by ZANU-PF ever since it won independence from white minority rule in 1980.Mnangagwa’s nickname — “the crocodile” — fits well for a man praised by supporters for his political cunning and criticized by others for a ruthless streak.Mnangagwa replaced the autocratic Mugabe as president after a military-led coup in 2017, won a disputed election in 20...

Commission to assess the proposed acquisition of Autotalks by Qualcomm

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:10 GMT

The European Commission has accepted the requests submitted by 15 EU member states to assess the proposed acquisition of Autotalks by Qualcomm under the EU Merger Regulation (‘EUMR').These referral requests reached the Commission after it had invited member states to make a referral request. Qualcomm is a global US-based semiconductor manufacturer serving various industries, including the automotive sector where its chipsets enable vehicles to communicate directly with each other and with their surrounding environment (vehicles-to-everything (‘V2X') communications). Autotalks is an Israeli semiconductor manufacturer specialized in V2X semiconductors.The proposed acquisition does not reach the notification thresholds set out in the EUMR, and it was not notifiable in any member state. Belgium, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and Sweden submitted initial referral requests to the Commission pursuant to Article 22(1) of the EUMR. This provision allows member states to reque...

A bus crashes off the road in central Turkey, leaving 12 passengers dead

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:10 GMT

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — A passenger bus veered off the road and crashed into a roadside ditch in central Turkey on Monday, killing 12 people and injuring 19 others, officials said.The driver of the bus lost control of the vehicle, which crossed into the oncoming lane and then plunged into the ditch near the central Turkish city of Yozgat, Gov. Mehmet Ali Ozkan said.The bus was traveling from Sivas — some 240 kilometers (150 miles) east of Yozgat — to Istanbul.Ozkan said 11 of the passengers died at the scene of the crash while one died later in the hospital.The injured passengers were being treated in nearby hospitals and one of them was in serious condition, he said.The cause of the crash was under investigation, Ozkan said, adding that it appeared to be the result of “carelessness” by the driver.The Associated Press

Hiding beneath normality, daily life in Kyiv conceals the burdens of war

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:10 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Life in the capital of a war-torn country seems normal on the surface. In the mornings, people rush to their work holding cups of coffee. Streets are filled with cars, and in the evenings restaurants are packed. But the details tell another story.Numerous buildings across Kyiv bear the scars of Russian bombardment. Sandbags are stacked around monuments, museums and office buildings to protect from possible attack. At nights, streets are empty after the midnight curfew comes into force. In restaurants, diners chat about life, friends and jobs and discuss whether they liked the Barbie or Oppenheimer movie better, or which concert they might attend. But such conversations can suddenly turn to stories about burying loved ones, or how they hid during the most recent missile attack or how they adjusted their schedule to balance sleepless nights and the need to be productive at work.“Death has become a very routine part of our life,” said Aliona Vyshnytska, 29, who wor...

Japan govt makes final plea to gain fisheries’ understanding for Fukushima plant water release

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:10 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese government officials sought understanding from fisheries groups Monday for the impending release of treated radioactive wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea and pledged to support their livelihoods throughout the process that will take decades. Economy and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura met with the head of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives and promised that the government is doing everything it can to ensure the safety of the release and prepared measures to protect the fisheries industry’s reputation.Nishimura told the fisheries official, Masanobu Sakamoto, that the water release is essential for the plant decommissioning and Fukushima’s recovery and can’t be postponed. He also said the government will stand by the concerns and needs of the fisheries community until the release ends decades later.Sakamoto, at the outset, stressed that his organization as a whole remains opposed to the releas...

Heat Stages Comeback this Week; Hilary's Impacts on Southwest; Monitoring Tropical Atlantic

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:10 GMT

"Hilary" grew into a powerhouse "Cat-4" hurricane with 145 mph sustained winds between Wednesday and Thursday last week—then, moving up and over the much cooler waters off Baja California Saturday and Sunday—weakened to its current tropical storm statusThe satellite "presentation" of "Hilary" in this multi-day sequence of image, frames of which you can "click through"and watch the progression on the series of true color GOES WEST satellite images I'm posting, is quite stunning.The sequence begins with a 9:40am CDT Wed GOES WEST image, then progresses day by day through Thursday, Friday, Saturday--and finally 9:40am CDT this (Sunday) morning 8/20/2023.9:40 am CDT Wed 8/16/20235:40 pm CDT Thu 8/178:50 am CDT Fri 8/185:40pm CDT Sat 8/199:40 am CDT Sunday 8/20Intensification over the warm waters off western Mexico was explosive between Wednesday and Thursday. Ocean temps there are running 3.6 to 7-deg F above typical August levels—and in the mid 80s F.Equally impressive has been the sto...

Commission clears acquisition of BPS by Advent and Warburg Pincus

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:10 GMT

The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of joint control of Baxter Pharmaceutical Solutions LLC of the US and Baxter Oncology GmbH of Germany ('BPS') by Advent International Corporation and affiliated funds (‘Advent') and Warburg Pincus LLC and affiliated funds (‘Warburg Pincus'), both of the US.BPS provides contract development and manufacturing organization services for finished dose pharmaceuticals. Advent is a private equity investor focusing on the acquisition of equity stakes and the management of investment funds in various sectors, including healthcare. Warburg Pincus is a global private equity firm active in a variety of sectors, including healthcare.The Commission concluded that the proposed acquisition would raise no competition concerns, given the companies' limited combined market position and the limited vertical relationships resulting from the proposed transaction. The transaction was examined under the simplified merger ...

Japan govt makes final plea to gain fisheries’ understanding for Fukushima plant water release

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:11:10 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese government officials sought understanding from fisheries groups Monday for the impending release of treated radioactive wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant into the sea and pledged to support their livelihoods throughout the process that will take decades. Economy and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura met with the head of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperatives and promised that the government is doing everything it can to ensure the safety of the release and prepared measures to protect the fisheries industry’s reputation.Nishimura told the fisheries official, Masanobu Sakamoto, that the water release is essential for the plant decommissioning and Fukushima’s recovery and can’t be postponed. He also said the government will stand by the concerns and needs of the fisheries community until the release ends decades later.Sakamoto, at the outset, stressed that his organization as a whole remains opposed to the releas...