Daily Archives: December 13, 2021

Zero Trust Security: Progress Report and One Identity Research Findings – MSSP Alert

Posted: December 13, 2021 at 2:30 am

by D. Howard Kass Dec 12, 2021

How important is implementing a Zero Trust security framework to organizations?Its important but not enough yet for most organizations to move forward with it, according to a newly released study.

Although three in four organizations consider Zero Trust critically or very important in their security armada, only one in seven have fully implemented the architecture, according to research results issued by One Identity, an Aliso Viejo, California-based unified identity security solution provider. Of the 1,000 survey professionals surveyed, 99 percent pegged Zero Trust overall as important. Still, about one in three organizations dont understand how they can implement Zero Trust within their environments and only 20 percent of stakeholders believe that their organizations fully comprehend Zero Trust.

Despite the hesitation surrounding Zero Trust, there is much wind at its back generated by the federal government. On the heels of President Bidens executive order in May 2021 covering the nations cybersecurity profile, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in September released a draft strategy to move the government towards a Zero Trust architecture. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) simultaneously released its Cloud Security Technical Reference Architecture and Zero Trust Maturity Model to guide and assist agencies in their implementation planning.

Neither of these steps are incidental to Zero Trusts expansion across the enterprise. Heres reason for the optimism:

What factors are holding organizations back from implementing Zero Trust?

How is Zero Trust progressing in the enterprise?

Organizations recognize that the traditional perimeter is no longer enough and that they will be best served by prioritizing identity security and taking steps to ensure bad actors are limited once they gain access, said Bhagwat Swaroop, One Identity president and general manager. Zero Trust is fast becoming an enterprise imperative because it eliminates vulnerable permissions and excessive access by delivering a continuum of different rights across the organization to ultimately limit attack surfaces if they are breached.

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IRC warns progress towards the commitments of the Global Compact on Refugees is alarmingly off-track – International Rescue Committee

Posted: at 2:30 am

Geneva, Switzerland, December 10, 2021 Ahead of officials meeting on 14-15 December to take stock of progress towards the objectives of the Global Compact on Refugees, the International Rescue Committee (IRC) warns of dire gaps in international support for refugees and the communities that host them.

A recent report from the IRC, in collaboration with Danish Refugee Council and Norwegian Refugee Council, shows that in the three years since the United Nations General Assembly agreed the Compact:

In addition, the IRC remains concerned that forcibly displaced women and girls are being left behind in the global effort towards the ambitions of the Compact. The IRC and the Georgetown Institute for Women Peace and Security today published a briefing highlighting the disadvantages they face in terms of their justice, inclusion and safety and calling for targeted support. It shows that even before the COVID-19 pandemic, displaced women generally faced much higher risks than host community women of violence at home, were consistently less likely to be financially included, and often experienced less freedom of movement. Households headed by displaced women were also more likely to be poor than those headed by displaced men. The pandemic has only compounded these disadvantages, but despite the growing needs of displaced women, UNHCRs own progress report on the Compact provides very limited gender-disaggregated data and none on economic inclusion indicators.

Farida Bena, Director of Policy and Advocacy at the IRC, said: Time is running out to get the Global Compact for Refugees back on track, and the pandemic has only made the need for progress more urgent -- especially for women and girls.

The IRC is calling on the international community to rapidly reprioritise and recommit to global responsibility sharing, increase resettlement levels and the number of resettlement countries. More and better funding from a variety of actors, including multilateral development banks beyond the World Bank, is needed to meet the ambitions of the Compact.

Across all of these efforts, the international community must prioritise commitments to empower and protect displaced women and girls. That means implementing commitments on self-reliance, financial inclusion and protection from violence, and explicitly monitoring progress for women when collecting data on progress toward the Compacts objectives.

About the IRC

The International Rescue Committee responds to the worlds worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is at work in over 40 countries and over 20 U.S. citieshelping people to survive, reclaim control of their future, and strengthen their communities.Learn more at http://www.rescue.org and follow the IRC on Twitter & Facebook.

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Red Wings’ progress is evident, thanks to growing defensive identity – The Detroit News

Posted: at 2:30 am

Detroit Let's turn back the clock to two yearsago, and recall where the Red Wings' status.

They had just lost to Pittsburgh, 5-3, and had fallen to a record of 7-21-3, anugly .258 win percentage.

The Wings were the last place team in the NHL standings as well asmany team statistical categories. It was a terrible start, and didn't get any better before the coronavirus put a quicker end to the campaign than expected.

The rebuild of the Wings' organization is far from complete. There are many more prospects to filter into the lineup.

More:Back from COVID-19 protocol list, Red Wings' Danny DeKeyser eager to join the 'fun'

But looking at Tuesday's NHL standings, the Wings have a 13-9-3 record, a win percentage of .580and are in the throes of a five-game win streak. Pretty remarkable progress.

"This year has been a total reversal from that so far," defenseman Danny DeKeyser said.

That Wings' roster had been a mix of young players learning the NHL, older players on expiring contracts past their prime and a handful of players in-between, below NHL caliber.

The team was overmatched nearly every game, and the standings reflected that.

"That was a tough season," DeKeyser said ."It seemed like every night, it felt like we didn't have a chance to win. It was tough to go through, and obviously tough in the locker room on the players.

"This year has been a total reversaland we just want to keep that going."

On more than one occasion, coach Jeff Blashill has mentioned how the 2019-20 season was the most difficult of his professional career.

As challenging a time as I ever had professionally, andIm sure it was the same for our players, Blashill said. Its fun to go into games with the expectation that you should win the hockey game. When you're down like we were two years ago, there were games you might be hoping to win the hockey game and now you feel you should win if you execute at a high level.

"That's not to disrespect anybody and not we're not here to say we're the 1986 Edmonton Oilers. But we believe when we go out and play our best hockey, we put ourselves in position to win. Certainly it's more fun to be in that spot than going out and feeling like you're hoping to win."

Blashill and many playersthink the Wings took a major step forward last season. Other than in January, when the Wings lost key regulars to COVID-19 protocol, the team was competitive throughthe shortened season.

Blashill felt the Wings committed to playing well defensively, and it has carried over this season.

There was an understanding of the importance of defending well, how it keeps you in games and you can find ways to win games," Blashill said. "I would say on this current stretch its been similar. Weve competed hard, and when you do that, youre in the mix to win games.

"Then its about making a play at a critical moment, and weve done that more this year than we did a year ago. Weve taken a step 25 games in, but weve got a big five-game segmentahead of us and a whole lot of games ahead.

The Wings recalled defenseman Luke Witkowski and forward Kyle Criscuolo from minor-league affiliate Grand Rapids.

With defensemeaMarc Staal (COVID-19 protocol), defenseman Gustav Lindstrom (upper body) and forward Tyler Bertuzzi (COVID-19 protocol) all unavailable, the Wings needed reinforcements.

DeKeyser returned to the lineup Tuesday after being on the protocol list. Forward Joe Veleno returned Saturday after missing three games.

"We're in a spot here between injuries and COVID that we have to make sure we have enough manpower," Blashill said.

Monday, the Wings recalled defenseman Dan Renouf.

With the Griffins not in action until later this week, the Wings were able to pluck Witkowski and Renouf.

Witkowski, 31, a Hollandnative,has shuttled between the NHL and AHL having played with the Wings for 65 games over two previous seasons.

"We'll see when and if we use him," Blashill said. "It would be a determination as we move forward."

There's little update on forward Jakub Vrana (shoulder surgery), who was hurt his first on-ice practice in training camp. He has yet to play this season.

"It's a long timetable and he's doing goodin his progress," Blashill said. "Certainly no steps back. But, honestly, it's going to take time."

... DeKeyser was expected to be paired with rookie Moritz Seider on Tuesday.

Danny is a guy who is really smart, as is Moritz, Blashill said. Danny'snot afraid to get on a rush, but hes also not afraid to stay back and let Moritz get on a rush. The more Moritz is playing here, the more hes in attack mode. So youve got to make sure that the other guy is smart enough to read that and make sure hes back.

"Certainly, Danny is that.

ted.kulfan@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @tkulfan

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Texas meets Seton Hall in Thursday matchup that lets the Longhorns gauge their progress – Hookem.com

Posted: at 2:30 am

Gauging the Longhorns progress through the first seven games isnt easy. Texas pummeled those well below their weight class but took a few licks from heavyweight Gonzaga.

The human pollsters think Texas is the seventh-best team in the country. The NCAAs computer algorithm, which produces what is known as the NET rankings, hasthe Horns lower at No. 16.

Neither of those things truly matter at the moment since its still early December. Conference play doesnt begin until January.

How to watch: Texas clashes with Seton Hall in Big 12/Big East Challenge

But thats why Thursdays game at Seton Hall is so fascinating. Texas (6-1) will face a team thats somewhat moving step for step along the same journey. The Pirates (7-1) are No. 23in the Associated Press Top 25 poll and No. 25 in the NET rankings.

Its something of an equal-weighted matchup in the Big 12/Big East Battle at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

We had a team meeting (Saturday night) in one of our rooms just to come together collectively about what we need to do moving forward, how we need to approach this game, how we need to approach these next couple of days of practice, UT guard Andrew Jones said before the Horns left Austin.

If we really want to be the team that we say we are and contend for championships, Jones added, we have to lock in and put on a better performance against high-major teams.

More: Chris Beards halftime talk motivated Horns, Vaqueros were rattled, panic, scared, disjointed

Seton Hall already has an impressive road win at then-No. 4 Michigan. This veteran bunch also lost to Ohio State by three points. Coach Kevin Willards team also had big, easy wins over Fairleigh Dickinson, Yale and Wagner.

I think there's a handful of teams in the country each year as the season goes on that are real contenders. Seton Hall's definitely in that neighborhood, coach Chris Beard said. Theyre literally a basket away from being a top five or six team right now.

Texas had no problem beating up lesser competition. Beards team has beaten only two teams ranked in the NETs top 200 Northern Colorado (No. 140) and California Baptist (No. 161). Houston Baptist, San Jose State, Sam Houston State and Texas-Rio Grande Valley all rank 233rd or lower.

Theres nothing wrong with playing lesser competition in nonconference play. In addition to facing Seton Hall, Texas has a date with Stanford (No. 158) on Dec. 19. Three more nonconference games against Arkansas-Pine Bluff (No. 338), Incarnate Word (No. 349) and Rice (No. 196) may not tell us any more than we already know.

If nothing else, Thursdays game is the Horns first chance to go back on the road and aim for 40 rugged minutes of basketball. Texas started slow defensively the first six minutes against Gonzaga and fell into a hole out in Spokane, Wash. A furious second-half comeback couldnt stave off an 86-74 loss.

The Pirates will have the height advantage, too. They're a big team, tall team, large team, whatever you want to call it, Beard said. Their identity is kind of their size.

Playing well on the road is going to be critical when Big 12 play starts. Texas travels to Kansas State, Oklahoma State and Iowa State all in the first half of January.

Weve just got to make sure that what we do at home travels, Jones said. We had that first pop of that early in the season. We just need to execute the game plan defensively and offensively and don't worry about our opponent and just be us.

Texas made a similar trip under similar circumstances 17 years ago. Then-coach Rick Barnes took a team to East Rutherford, N.J., to face Seton Hall. There was plenty of hope with lanky freshman LaMarcus Aldridge, then just a highly-touted recruit from Seagoville.

He's the one guy we can all look at and know, as the season goes on, hes gonna get better, Barnes said in early December 2004.

The Horns wanted to know where they stood then, too.

Texas would shoot 39.3%, but its defense saved the day. The Pirates were held to 36.8% shooting and made just three of 23 3-point shots. The Horns won 70-62 on Dec. 4, 2004.

Not much has changed. The Texas coach is still preaching defense and the Horns find themselves in high-profile, nonconference matchups.

Beard took the team a day early so the Horns could visit New York, see a Broadway show and visit the top of the Empire State building.

These guys work so hard and make so many sacrifices, to take a trip like this where we can enjoy the trip, I don't apologize for anybody, Beard said. We understand its a business trip. Nobody understands that more than I do.

Contact Brian Davis by phone or text at 512-445-3957. Email bdavis@statesman.com or @BDavisAAS.

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Durham programs show progress in slowing spread of violent crime by children – WRAL.com

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By Lora Lavigne, WRAL Durham reporter

Durham, N.C. Data shows more juveniles are committing serious offenses involving weapons, robberies, thefts and assaults in Durham.

Prior to Dec. 1, 2019, the juvenile crime rate was defined as the rate of delinquent offenses per 1,000 people ages 6 through 15. Starting in 2020, the juvenile crime rate measured the rate of delinquent offenses per 1,000 people ages 6 through 17.

An increase was expected when state expanded the age range for those who can be classified as juveniles from 15 to 17.

Durham and Durham County leaders are working to buckle down on this issue, however, and prevent more teens from going down that path.

Tackling violent crime among young people has become a priority for leaders in Durham, and the pandemic only heightened their concerns.

A factor in the increase in crime committed by young people could be the fact that youth in Durham face higher rates of mental health and substance abuse problems compared to other counties, according to a survey.

I think these factors have led to possibly an increase in crime, especially among our young youth and especially among our gang-involved youth, said Jim Stuit, Durhams gang reduction strategy manager.

He explains the 2020 data which shows Durham juveniles are four times more likely to be in a gang or in association compared to their statewide peers.

When we look at court-involved youth in Durham County, we see that about 25% of them are currently are involved in some kind of a gang. That compares with only 7% of the statewide average, he said.

Department of Public Safety data shows that in 2019, 17 Durham juveniles committed violent offenses. In 2020, that number jumped to 148. Durham isn't unique in that though. Juvenile violent crime jumped 66.5% statewide, according to the data.

Of course, any criminal activity is disturbing by anyone, but when we see our children and I stress our children getting involved in these types of activities, were noticing higher caliber weapons on our streets, but also victims and perpetrators are getting younger, said Mark Anthony Middleton, Durham mayor pro tem.

On Thursday, the Durham city council received a breakdown of crimes by age in a quarterly crime report. It shows children as young as 12 are stealing, robbing and being charged with physical assault.

We know that we dont want to lock all of our children up. This is not just a policing situation," Middleton said. "We need to do better in providing opportunities and pathways and access for our young people that will give them options.

The county has several gang intervention and violence prevention programs available.

Stuit said the plan is to continue bringing awareness to those resources. A few indicators show its already making a difference.

Though crime is up, the crime rate among young people remains below the state average at 13.86 per 1,000, significantly lower North Carolina's, which is 18.08 per 1,000.

I think we can say that there has been some success, but obviously weve got a lot more work to do, and weve got a lot of people continuing to work on that, said Stuit.

The Durham Gang Assessment for this year is wrapping up, and that report will be released next year. The city also has several initiatives underway to target at-risk youth in the community.

In a statement, the Durhams District Attorneys Office tells WRAL News:

Research supports that young people who come in contact with the court system are more likely to return as adults. For these reasons, we focus prosecution efforts on serious and violent cases involving juveniles. That said, this is a small number of individuals and a small portion of the overall cases that come to our office.

In 2019, the Durham DAs Office created a Juvenile Team that handles all cases involving people under 18. This helps ensure case resolutions are tailored to the unique needs of juveniles and connects them to treatment and other resources that can help them avoid future offenses. In 2019, it also stopped accepting court referrals for offenses in schools, with exceptions for violent crimes.

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Family of Dayton teen shot in AL sees progress and improvement – WDTN.com

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DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) The family of a Dayton teen who was shot at an Alabama Church spoke out Friday.

18-year-old Michaela Fauber, of Dayton, was the victim of a shooting at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Vestiva Hills, Alablama Dec. 3, according to Sgt. Joni Money with the Jefferson County Sheriffs Office.

Deputy Chief David Agee said at a press conference that a man described to be in his mid-20s played a few games of basketball with teens who he did not know in the gymnasium before he began shooting.

Fauber was taken to a hospital and underwent surgery where he was listed in serious but stable condition.

Friday, Saubers family released a statement:

The family of Elder Michael Fauber is overwhelmed with the love and support we are receiving during this difficult time. We are seeing progress and improvement every day in our sons condition as he continues what will be a long recovery. We expect he will remain hospitalized for several more days. He is aware of the many prayers being offered on his behalf and sends his appreciation. Michael has loved his missionary service and loves the people of Alabama. His testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ is strong and his faith in Him gives each of us comfort. Thank you all for your many acts of kindness toward Michael and our family.

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‘Progress’ was a real step backwards for women’s team – The National

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IS progress always a good thing? Watching the progress of womens sport is interesting, particularly if, like me, you have been involved for around 30 years you can definitely compare then and now with confidence.

However, sometimes we have to be careful for we wish for! A case in point is Charlton Ladies or Womens FC, who were taken over in February by Thomas Sandgaard, a Danish-American businessman.

It is reported that the new owner is the one pushing for the change in name from women to ladies, against the wishes of everyone involved in the womens side, as the term is now considered to be derogatory and outdated.

In fact our own Glasgow City FC, who are strong pioneers in the womens game, made a stand many years ago and dropped the word women from their name altogether.

Leadership is about listening to your team, understanding their issues and beliefs and working together towards success. I think there is some listening to be done on the part of Mr Sandgaard, and the sooner the better.

Its also fair to say that immense progress has been made by our national team, who fought their way through to compete at the Womens World Cup in France in 2019, for the first time in their history.

We missed out on the European Championship being held in England in 2022 but the team are currently on the road to qualification for the 2023 World Cup, which will be held in Australia and New Zealand.

Their most recent result against Spain was a dent in their progress, losing 8-0 to a well disciplined and talented squad, but dont let this blip in our progress stop you from supporting the team for the rest of the games.

Remember, you do make a difference, so put April 12, 2022, in your diary and head to Hampden for the home match against the Spanish.

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Progress report: Looking back at Ron Hextalls early moves with the Penguins – PensBurgh

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Ron Hextall has been in charge of the Pittsburgh Penguins for a little less than a year and so far has lived up to his reputation for being a patient general manager. Moves have been few-and-far between and he has been the exact opposite of what we became used to with Jim Rutherford, and even to an extent Ray Shero.

There have been no panic moves.

There have been no dramatic overhauls of the roster.

There has been no real major blockbuster trade.

Just carefully planned moves that have made varying degrees of impact.

Lets take a look at them and the progress with them so far.

Hextalls first major move came at the deadline this past season, and so far it has been the most impactful deal.

Not only was the cost minimal (two mid-round picks), but the Kings ate a portion of Carters salary and left the Penguins on the hook for only a $2.65 million salary cap hit.

All Carter has done since joining the team is score goals. Even this year he is still on a 25-goal pace per 82 games and has really helped solidify the teams depth. He has been a great fit as a second-line center this season in Evgeni Malkins absence, and should be perfect for the third-line role when Malkin returns. Sidney Crosby, Malkin, Carter, and Teddy Blueger is as good of a center quartet as you will find in the NHL right now as long as everybody is healthy and in the lineup.

The Penguins spent years and countless assets trying to fill that third-line center void after Nick Bonino left in free agency, and they may have finally found it in Carter.

Current trade grade: A

With an expansion draft this offseason everybody knew the Penguins were going to lose at least player, and given the salary cap situation, maybe more. Before the expansion draft they traded McCann to Toronto for a late draft pick and to get back prospect Filip Hallander, who was originally traded to the Maple Leafs in the Kasperi kapanen trade.

It was not a move that I liked at the time, and hindsight has not been any kinder to it.

McCann already has 10 goals in 20 games for Seattle, is still in a prime age, affordable under the salary cap, and has the versatility to play center or wing and help on the power play.

The Penguins could use him.

It is doubtful that Hallander ever comes close to being the player that McCann already is.

On top of that, they still lost Brandon Tanev in the expansion draft and essentially lost two players because of the expansion draft.

Current trade grade: D

This was a move that I had relatively low expectations for. Heinen had shown some flashes of being a productive player earlier in his career, but struggled to consistently produce the past couple of years on some bad Anaheim Ducks teams. But for $1.1 million on a one-year deal the price seemed right to hope for a rebound.

The Penguins seem to be getting that rebound performance.

Heinen already has seven goals this season and has posted strong underlying numbers, looking like a really useful player in a lot of different roles to help solidify the depth.

It was a low-risk, reasonably high reward signing that has worked out about as well as could have been expected.

Current signing grade: B+

When Seattle took Tanev it cleared one fourth-liner on a long-term deal, and the Penguins used that newfound salary cap space on another fourth-liner on a long-term deal.

Am a little unsure of this one.

For one, fourth-liners probably should not be signed to long-term deals even if they are useful in the short-term. And McGinn has definitely been useful. There is no denying he has made an impact on what has been a historically good penalty kill, and he has chipped in a little bit of offense at times. But could that salary cap space have been used in a more meaningful way?

Current signing grade: C+

This was one of those filler signings close to the start of the season. The center depth looked thin due to injuries, and Boyle was somebody that not only gave them NHL experience but also the size Hextall and Brian Burke kept talking about in the offseason.

Given his status as a tryout player and the small contract he ended up signing there is literally zero risk long-term or short-term.

If he works out, it is a bonus. If not, you are not really out anything as long as he does not get overused. That has not happened, either.

Tough to have any real strong opinions on this move one way or another.

Current signing grade: C

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A Holistic Approach is Needed to Respond to Future Shocks in the Caribbean – Modern Diplomacy

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The two-hour December 7th Biden-Putin conversation (via video-conference) focused mainly on the conflict between Ukraine and its breakaway former Donbass region, which is in Ukraines far east and borders on Russia.

In order to understand the conversation, some basic history that produced the current situation there needs to be stated, because this is the point-of-reference behind the summit-conversation that occurred on December 7th:

The 5 September 2014 Minsk Protocol, and its followup 12 February 2015 Minsk II Agreement, established the agreements between Ukraine and the Donbass breakaway region, that ended the intense hot war; and both of the two Minsk agreements were negotiated directly between the two warring sides, in order to stop the hot war, in which the Donbassers were defending themselves against the bombs and missiles from Ukraine, and to peacefully establish the framework called The Normandy Framework in which a final settlement between the two sides in that war would peacefully become settled, by its two participants.

That Normandy Framework was between the two warring regions Ukraine versus the breakaway former region of Ukraine being advised by three nations that were not directly, but only indirectly, involved, and which three nations wanted the matter to be settled without restoring the full-fledged warfare which had existed in 2014: these three were France, Germany, and Russia. (France and Germany were involved because they led the European Union, and because the EU wanted Ukraine to become a member of the EU. Russia was involved because both Ukraine and Donbass are on Russias border, and Russia doesnt want U.S. missiles to be placed less than a ten-minute flying time to hit Moscow. Obama wanted Ukraine in the EU as a preparation for Ukraine to become admitted into NATO so that America can then place its missiles in Ukraine.) The United States was not invited into the Normandy framework, because its Government wanted restoration of the warfare between those two regions and a conquest of Donbass by Ukraine.

The initial idea for the Normandy framework had been worked out between Germanys Angela Merkel and Frances Francois Hollande, in order to enable Ukraine to be restored to peace so that all member-states of the EU could then vote favorably on Ukraines admission of Ukraine into the European Union. (Otherwise, a veto by one or more of the EU member-nations would be certain, in accord with the EUs still-unratified Constitution, because the EUs Rule of Unanimity would apply, and because any attempt to ovderride that Rule would collapse the EU altogether.)

Hollande and Merkel would not have initiated the Minsk agreements unless they were dissatisfied with the way that Obama was dealing with the Ukraine issue. In other words: America was being shut out of the matter entirely, by the EU. Biden is demanding that America now replace the Minsk agreements by an agreement that will be forced upon the Donbass by Russia. Putin said no. He said that the two warring parties need to come to an agreement, and that he wont allow the United States to nullify the commitments that both sides (Ukraine v. Donbass) signed onto in those agreements. Americas demanding that Ukraines side in the conflict be imposed upon Donbass so that Ukraines violations of Minsk are allowed but Donbasss violations in response are prohibited is not acceptable to him. He especially emphasizes this because ONLY Ukraines side wants the Minsk agreements to become nullified.

The big hang-up in implementing the agreements is, and has been, the refusal by Ukraine to allow the breakaway region to become a special administrative district of Ukraine as Crimea had been during the 60 years (1954-2014) during which Crimea was transferred by the Soviet dictator away from Russia (of which it had been a part since 1783) and forced into Ukraine. Because of the resistance by Crimeans, Crimea became allowed to be largely self-ruled within Ukraine. The U.S. regime refuses to allow Ukraine to agree to treating the breakaway Donbass region in that way. The U.S. has the full backing, in this, of the two Ukrainian racist-fascist, or nazi, Ukrainian Parties, Right Sector, and (originally called the Social-Nationalist Party of Ukraine in honor of Nazi Germany) the Freedom Party, or Svoboda (which means freedom in Ukrainian); and those two Parties had been the on-the-ground forces whom the CIA trained (inside the U.S. Embassy, and also in Poland) to perpetrate the U.S. coup that occurred in Kiev in February 2014. The coups preparation began no later than 2011. An extermination plan was promptly instituted after the coup, by the new Ukrainian government, against the supporters of Donbass autonomy, and the war against Donbass began, in order to force the residents there to remain in the new, U.S.-imposed, nazi Ukraine. (Among their Commanders who admitted this was Ruslan Onishchtschenko, who even admitted that their mission, being employees of the Ministry of the Interior, is to clean the cities after the army has worked this territory with aircraft, artillery and heavy military equipment.) Obama wanted the residents eliminated from there, because 90+% of them had voted for the Ukrainian President (Janukovych) that Obama overthrew. (Obama overthrew him because that Ukrainian President didnt want Ukraine to become a NATO-member.) If those people, in Donbass, were to vote in another Ukrainian Presidential election, then the U.S. control over Ukraine would terminate. The U.S. regime doesnt want that to happen, because it wants to place its missiles there. It also planned to turn Russias biggest naval base, which was (and remains) in Crimea, into a U.S. naval base, but Russia succeeded in thwarting that aspect of his plan.

Although most EU member-nations wanted Ukraine to become a member of the EU, they objected to Americas plan for a hot war against Russia, even though they were hostile toward Russia.

On 26 April 2015, the Financial Times headlined Germany urges Ukraine to fulfil Minsk ceasefire agreement, and that neoconservative news-medium reported:

In the UK, which has followed the US in taking a tougher line against Moscow, an official said Ukraine should fulfill its side of the Minsk deal and not give Russia the space to criticise them.

The latest Minsk accord, agreed in February under pressure from Germany and France, has reduced fighting and led to the withdrawal of some heavy weapons from frontlines, though soldiers and civilians still die almost daily.

But Berlin is worried that Kiev is dragging its feet over other parts of the fragile deal, notably in trying to postpone political decentralisation until after local elections are staged in separatist-held territory. [That until after local elections are staged in separatist-held territory turned out to have been a false excuse, because those elections soon did occur and Ukraine continued its refusal nonetheless.]

For Ukraine this is critical because it does not want to hand over power to separatist leaders in the Donbas region, who are not recognised by the international community. EU diplomats say, however, that while local elections are indeed envisaged under Minsk, the accord does not insist that they take place before decentralisation.

The 17th EU-Ukraine Summit Joint Statement was issued on 27 April 2015 and was the 17th EU Summit. It was the first EU Summit that included Ukraine (though still not a member, and still at war), and they stated that the EU nations

expressed their full support for the Minsk Agreements including the Package of Measures of 12 February2015, endorsed by UNSC Resolution 2202 of 17 February 2015.

12. The leaders called on all parties to swiftly and fully implement the Minsk Agreements and honour their commitments andunderlined the Russian authorities responsibility in this regard.

They tried to lay the blame upon Russia if the agreements were to turn out not to be complied with. But soon thereafter, no doubt could any longer exist that it was their own side the Ukraine side that refused to allow the basic provision, which was that Ukraine must negotiate a settlement with Donbass, to be fulfilled. The EU leaders were either willingly conned, or else they were lying throughout.

Already, on 12 April 2015, Deutsche Wirtschafts Nachrichten (DWN) had bannered French Secret Service: Russia never planned to invade Ukraine and reported:

The real difficulty with NATO is the fact that US intelligence dominates while French intelligence is only occasionally taken into account. That is why it is important for us to appoint sufficient NATO commanders of French origin. NATO has announced that the Russians are preparing to invade Ukraine. However, based on the findings of the DRM, this claim could not be upheld. In fact, we found that the Russians had neither set up command posts nor took any logistical measures, such as setting up field hospitals.There were no activities to be undertaken in preparation for a military invasion.At the second level of command there was no corresponding cause.As a result, it became clear that our assumptions were correct.The Russian soldiers actually seen in Ukraine acted as if they were carrying out a maneuver to put pressure on Ukrainian President Pororschenko rather than an imminent invasion.

With this statement, which surprisingly was not discussed further in the committee, the French general contradicts the official NATO doctrine,according to which Russia had made massive preparations to invade Ukraine.

Gomart isa seasoned officer in the French Army andwas only appointed Chief of Military Intelligence in 2013.

Hisstatements coincide with the criticism of Federal Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who complained about NATO Commander-in-Chief Philip Breedlove because of obvious differences in intelligence about the situation in Ukraine.TheUS general was exaggerating Russias military role since the crisis began, Der Spiegel reported a few weeks ago.Accordingly, the Chancellery spoke of dangerous propaganda, while Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier intervened with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

Steinmeier said there was no intervention, only inquiries. It is true that I myself have had two inquiries myself in situations in which the information we had from our sources didnot completely agree with information that came either from NATO or the American side. A dispute arises because the federal government has no interest in that [American view]. He is in close contact with US Secretary of State John Kerry so that such differences do not arise.

In the EU, there is growing resistance to the escalation in relations with Russia, as it is being pursued by the US hawks(see the notorious thought leader Zbigniew Brzeziski).ItalyandGreecewant to get out of the spiral of sanctions because their own economies are being damaged. France must be saved because the coalition of conservatives and social democratsmustprevent the Front Nationalfromwinning at all costs inorder not to endanger the euro zone substantially. The fact that the official NATO version about Ukraine is now being described as incorrect by France (of all places) is indelicate in this context.

Afew weeks ago,US PresidentBarack Obama surprisingly called for a withdrawaland temporarily stopped sending US soldiers to Ukraine. NATO had announced that it would take over some of the training of the Ukrainian army from March.In the course of this training, the right-wing extremist militias in Ukraine are also being trained by the Americans. They are to be integrated into the regular Ukrainian army, but are allowed to continue to act autonomously.The right-wing extremists reject the Minsk Agreement.

On 25 April 2015, DWN headlined USA and Russia are preparing for a new escalation in Ukraine and reported:

The ceasefire in the Eastern Ukraine is deceptive: Apparently the Russians and theAmericans are preparing for new military actions.The US government wants to keep theissue on the boil, to put the EU and the proposed Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership treaty under pressure [force European governments to accept it, which was a major Obama project to increase their bond with America and their separation from Russia].The US has fallen in an energy-war tight spot, since Moscow announced it will no longer manage its natural gas from 2019through Ukraine.The next military incident seems to be only a matter of time.

The President as a perpetual commander: the US has an economic interest thatUkraine remains a controversial land.(Photo: Reuters)

While somewhat keeping the warring parties in eastern Ukraine to the agreements of Minsk,there are, running in the background,obvious preparations for a new escalation.The Financial Times is already writing about a war of words.Such propaganda war isinherently favorable to escalation.France and Germany have noted that the US government has indeed recently been criticized for manifestmisinformation. But this doesnt prevent the US officials to maintain the chosen course.TheUS envoy Geoffrey Pyattis tweeting almost maniacally about new threats every hour.

The US government has only recently come under fire from France and Germany for blatant misinformation. But this does not prevent the US representatives from maintaining the course they have chosen.

On 30 April 2015, Voice of America bannered Carter Pleased with Russias Embrace of Minsk Agreement and reported: In an exclusive interview with VOA after meeting with President Putin, [Jimmy] Carter said the Elders were pleased with Russias allegiance to the Minsk agreement. Theres not any doubt in our mind that the Russians genuinely want to see all the aspects of that concluded. [But, General Breedlove, the NATO Commander,] said many of Russias actions are consistent with preparations for another offensive into Ukrainian territory. [And,] Commenting on Carters remarks, the U.S. State Department said Thursday it would not speculate on the reasoning behind his [Carters] statements. We know that Russia has continued to undermine the Minsk implementation plan and the Minsk agreements. The Obama Administration was determined to discredit that prior Democratic Party U.S. Presidents obstructionist pronouncements.

On 2 May 2015, DWN headlined Chaos in Kiev: Ukraine armynow fighting against theirown militias and reported that a U.S.-supplied battalion of nazis (far-right volunteers, or mercenaries, whom Ukraines Government allowed to fight against the Donbass residents and to be led by leaders of the Right Sector and Svoboda parties) were now being attacked by some members of Ukraines regular army. Basically, the U.S. regime, which had imposed this government upon Ukraine, was now goading it to provoke Russian forces into the war, perhaps in order for America then to have justification to go to war against Russia itself, so as to defend the Ukrainian government that Americas own Ukrainian coup had installed.

As a wrap-up here, the great geostrategic analyst, Alexander Mercouris, headlined, on 8 December 2021, Following Putin-Biden summit, Neocons push for war, and he and others listed there the ways in which the entire Biden Administrations international-affairs team are not only incompetents, but hate-driven incompetents, who are maniacally determined to destroy Russia, if they possibly can.

So, Putins rejection of Bidens demand for the U.S. Government to replace the Minsk agreements by an agreement that would be imposed upon Donbass by the U.S (and any perhaps willing U.S.-vassal-nation such as Poland) is actually little else than an application by him of his previously stated red line that must not be crossed or else Russia will instantaneously be in a hot war against any nation that does. The world will soon know whether Biden has finally gotten the message.

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Why Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian Cruise Lines Surged This Week – Motley Fool

Posted: at 2:29 am

What happened

Shares of Carnival Corporation (NYSE:CCL)(NYSE:CUK), Royal Caribbean (NYSE:RCL), and Norwegian Cruise Lines (NYSE:NCLH) all appreciated by mid-teens this week, up 11.6%, 11.9%, and 17.1%, respectively, as of end of trading Thursday.

There wasn't much in the way of company-specific news this week, but all three benefited from positive news regarding the omicron coronavirus variant. Omicron had caused all travel stocks to sell off at the end of November and into early December, so some relief on that front caused a big bounce.

Image source: Getty Images.

The omicron variant first hit headlines on Thanksgiving, and since then, travel-related stocks such as the cruise companies quickly reversed their recoveries from earlier in the year. Omicron has already started to affect consumer spending, according to Bank of America, which released data today showing consumer spending, mostly for international travel, declined as a result of the variant.

However, that uncertainty was likely baked into the cruise stocks coming into the week, so some good news about omicron's severity, as well as vaccine effectiveness, took some pressure off, allowing these stocks to bounce.

Last weekend, Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical officer to the president, said that while more data needed to be studied, it appeared omicron caused less severe disease than the delta variant. That good news was followed up by GlaxoSmithKlineon Tuesday, which said its antibody treatment appeared to be effective against omicron in preliminary tests. Then on Wednesday, Pfizerand mRNA vaccine partner BioNTechclaimed booster doses of its COVID-19 vaccine were effective against omicron, although the variant could elude antibodies in those with just two doses.

The news that boosted people are well protected, and that the new variant may not cause hospitalization and death, could only be positives for travel-related stocks. Cruise lines in particular are very sensitive to virus news, as all three companies are highly levered after taking on huge debt loads to get through the pandemic.

We have been in a trend over the past year or so where good news on the virus means cruise stocks go up, while bad news causes them to go down. Yet entering 2022, I'm not so sure that will remain the case. Despite the omicron variant being perhaps more manageable than first thought when it hit the news wires, there is still a lot of risk in all of these cruise stocks.

All three had to take on massive amounts of debt at high rates and also issued new shares at low prices to get through the pandemic, and those dilutive burdens are still on their balance sheets. Meanwhile, while the cruise lines have already restarted operations, all three companies are still generating big operating losses and continue to burn through cash -- even if the burn is slightly lower than last year.

Additionally, the last few months have seen costs of labor and fuel go up across the world, and both of those are key inputs in the cruise companies' cost base. And if interest rates rise next year, that could lead to even higher interest and refinancing costs on each company's massive debt load -- yet another cost headwind.

Cruise stock investors seem to think things will snap back to normal, or even better than normal, once the pandemic recedes. But with a new variant entering the scene and costs going up even before a recovery, a rebound in cruise stock financials could be much further off. I'd stay cautious on these names in 2022, even after this week's positive news.

This article represents the opinion of the writer, who may disagree with the official recommendation position of a Motley Fool premium advisory service. Were motley! Questioning an investing thesis -- even one of our own -- helps us all think critically about investing and make decisions that help us become smarter, happier, and richer.

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Why Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian Cruise Lines Surged This Week - Motley Fool

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