Ireland plans to buy first fighter jets in 50 years
Ireland’s planned purchase of combat jets and the development of a long-overdue national radar system mark a historic turning point in the country’s approach to air defence, ending decades of reliance on the United Kingdom to protect Irish skies.
Since 1998, when the Irish Air Corps disbanded its Light Strike Squadron, which operated aging French Fouga CM170 Magister jets, Ireland has had no combat jets. The country also lacks a primary radar system. Without these capabilities, a “secret bilateral pact” has seen the UK’s Royal Air Force (RAF) tasked with intercepting and responding to aerial threats in Irish airspace.
According to former Irish Air Corps head General Ralph James, this reliance on a foreign power, coupled with Ireland’s lack of radar coverage, has made the country “probably the most vulnerable” in Europe. Speaking at the Slándáil 2020 security summit, James warned that neutrality alone was not a defence strategy, stressing that Ireland must be able to deny its airspace to both sides in any future conflict.
#Ireland #News #AeroTime
Read More...
Canada imposes new sanctions against Russia
Canada introduced new sanctions on March 2 against 10 Russian individuals and 21 entities, including paramilitary groups.
The sanctions were announced by the Office of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, following his participation the same day in the European leaders’ summit in London.
Canada’s new sanctions target leaders of post-Wagner paramilitary organizations, a senior Russian military official, and several groups operating in Ukraine and Africa, as well as entities involved in resource extraction within these networks.
"To date, Canada has imposed sanctions on over 3,000 individuals and entities complicit in Russia’s aggression – and we remain committed to working with our partners to increase economic pressure on Russia," the statement said. “Canada’s commitment to Ukraine is unwavering.”
#KyivIndependent #News
#Russia #Canada
Read More...
Russia and U.S. Held Secret Talks on Restarting Nord Stream 2 Pipeline
Russian and U.S. negotiators held secret talks on resuming gas flows to Germany via the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, the German tabloid Bild reported Sunday, citing anonymous sources familiar with the matter.
The Swiss-based operator of Nord Stream 2 and other Russia-based entities linked to the $11 billion pipeline are currently under U.S. sanctions. The reported U.S.-Russia discussions on restarting the pipeline are seen as part of President Donald Trump’s efforts to rebuild ties with Russia.
According to Bild, Trump’s special envoy Richard Grenell made multiple unofficial visits to the headquarters of Nord Stream 2 AG — the pipeline’s operator, which is fully owned by Russia’s sanctioned energy giant Gazprom — in the Swiss city of Steinhausen for negotiations.
Grenell denied participating in the reported talks.
#TheMoscowTimes #News #Russia #US #Germany
Read More...
Canada PM Trudeau says protecting independence is his priority in talks with King Charles
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his priority in talks with King Charles on Monday will be protecting his country's sovereignty after U.S. President Donald Trump recently suggested making Canada the 51st U.S. state.
Trudeau said nothing is more important to his citizens than "standing up for our sovereignty and our independence", ahead of the meeting with Charles, who is Canada's head of state.
Last week, Charles invited Trump to what would be a historic second state visit to Britain, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer handing over the invitation during a meeting before the world's media in the Oval Office.
"I look forward to sitting down with His Majesty tomorrow, as always we will discuss matters of importance to Canada and Canadians, and I can tell you that nothing seems more important to Canadians than standing up for our sovereignty and our independence as a nation," Trudeau told reporters.
Trudeau, the outgoing prime minister, said last month that Trump's talk about absorbing Canada "is a real thing" and is linked to the country's rich natural resources.
Trump has repeatedly suggested Canada would be better off if it agreed to become the 51st U.S. state.
Trudeau was also asked about Trump's meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. "I stand with Zelenskiy," he said.
#Investing #News #Canada #KingCharles
Read More...
A bee performs what is known as the "waggle dance".
This dance communicates to other members of the hive the direction and distance to patches of flowers, water sources, or new nest locations.
#Bee #Interesting
Read More...
Dow tumbles 800 points as Trump confirms tariffs on Mexico and Canada will start Tuesday
US stocks slid Monday as investors braced for President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs on Canada and Mexico to go into effect by the midnight deadline.
The Dow tumbled 650 points, or 1.48%, to close at 43,191. The Dow fell almost 900 points in afternoon trading before pulling back slightly. The broader S&P 500 fell 1.76% and the Nasdaq Composite fell 2.64%.
The S&P 500 posted its biggest one-day decline of the year. The Nasdaq is down about 6.5% since since Trump took office on January 20.
“Tomorrow, tariffs — 25% on Canada and 25% on Mexico,” Trump said during a press conference at the White House. “And that’ll start. … What they have to do is build their car plants, frankly, and other things in the United States, in which case they have no tariffs.”
Trump said the two trading partners had “no room” left to negotiate to avoid the levies and that he was using tariffs to “punish” countries that, as he put it, were taking from the US economy without giving enough in return.
“They’re all set. They go into effect tomorrow,” he said.
Trump also signed an executive order on Monday raising tariffs on imports from China to 20%, up from 10%. Trump said the tariffs, aimed at bringing China to the table on curtailing fentanyl entering the United States, will be raised because the communist country has not done enough to stem the flow of illegal drugs.
The VIX, Wall Street’s fear gauge, surged to its highest point this year after Trump’s comments.
“Due to the uncertainty surrounding the tariffs, the stock market has erased the gains from the ‘Trump bump’ following the presidential election and the expected upward pressure on prices is giving investors pause,” said Gustavo Flores-Macias, a professor of government and public policy at Cornell University.
“For investors, 2025 can still be a positive year for stocks, but it may take all year to realize gains. And they may be modest,” said Gina Bolvin, president of Bolvin Wealth Management Group.
“I’m still a bull,” Bolvin said.
The import taxes Trump imposed are significant — the largest in US-China history. The initial tariffs, which went into effect February 4, set in motion tariffs on $1.4 trillion of imported goods. That’s more than triple the $380 billion worth of foreign goods that were hit with tariffs during Trump’s first term, according to estimates from the Tax Foundation.
Before he became president, Trump pledged a 60% tariff on all Chinese goods, so the tariff level could rise still.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said at the press conference about tariffs on Canada and Mexico that global companies can avoid tariffs if they invest into production in the United States, like TSMC, the Taiwanese chipmaker at the White House on Monday to announce a $100 billion US investment.
Trump’s tariffs will raise prices of imported goods, which could boost demand for goods produced in the US, according to analysts at Goldman Sachs. But they also noted that tariffs will have negative effects on some American businesses.
“Tariff increases will also raise production costs for some domestic producers and will likely prompt foreign retaliation against some US exports, both of which could hurt domestic production,” they wrote in a note.
#CNN
#Mexico #Canada #China #US #News
Read More...
Best Comic funny😂🤣
Best Comic funny😂🤣
#thefarside
#comicstrips
#comicbooks
#dailycomics
Read More...
Stunning Deep Sky Astrophotography ✨✨✨ The Amazing
Stunning Deep Sky Astrophotography ✨✨✨
#universe #space
Read More...
World of Warcraft’s The War Within headstart is live – prepare for a long spoiler-dodging weekend
Depending on how much you shelled out for World of Warcraft’s newest expansion, this is either the best or longest weekend of the year for you. Early access for The War Within kicked off yesterday, with the world-first level 80 happening a shade over an hour later.
WoW players who don’t have access to the head start are advised to stay off the global chat channels, streams, and WoW fan sites as spoilers are being flung around pretty fast and loose right now. Those “left behind” can continue to enjoy the Radiant Echoes event, although this had a nasty (but now corrected) issue where the XP was pretty much disabled.
Meanwhile over in WoW Classic, Blizzard is consolidating all of its Season of Discovery servers to one PvP and one PvE realm per region with free character transfers available. “Most of the origin realms currently still have healthy populations, and we recognize that moving characters can be disruptive to player communities, so this is not a decision we take lightly,” the studio said.
Source: World of Warcraft, 2
Read More...
European leaders ‘doubling down’ on backing Zelensky after Trump blowup
LONDON — Rattled European leaders said Sunday they were “doubling down” on supporting Ukraine and boosting military aid following the televised Oval Office blowup between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The embattled Zelensky was greeted with cheers outside 10 Downing Street and a warm hug from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer when he arrived late Saturday for an emergency summit of European leaders. The pair embraced again at the start of the session Sunday, which Starmer described as a “once-in-a-generation moment” for European security, and they sat side-by-side during the talks.
The display of support stood in stark contrast with comments Sunday from Trump administration officials, who heaped blame on Zelensky for the White House uproar. National security adviser Michael Waltz described Zelensky’s behavior as “incredibly disrespectful,” and Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused him of disrupting U.S. efforts to get Russian President Vladimir Putin to negotiate an end to the war.
#WashingtonPost
#Europe #News #Zelensky
Read More...
