World

Head Of United Nations Calls Global Situation ‘Unsustainable’ As Annual Meeting Of Leaders Opens

Published

2 months ago

2024-09-24

United Nations — The head of the United Nations warned the gathered leaders of nations Tuesday that impunity, inequality, and uncertainty are driving modern civilization towards “a powder keg that risks engulfing the world” — the latest in a series of clarion calls from Antonio Guterres in recent years that the global situation is becoming intolerable and untenable.

“We can’t go on like this,” the secretary-general declared in an ominous state-of-the-world address as he started the annual high-level meeting of the United Nations’ 193 member countries.

He stated that the world is in “an era of epic transformation” with unprecedented difficulties, including widening geopolitical divisions, global warming, and wars raging in the Middle East, Ukraine, Sudan, and elsewhere with no end in sight.

“We are edging towards the unimaginable – a powder keg that risks engulfing the world,” Guterres addressed presidents, prime ministers, and ministers in the huge General Assembly auditorium.

Head Of United Nations Calls Global Situation ‘Unsustainable’ As Annual Meeting Of Leaders Opens

However, he did not go so far as to proclaim that hope was lost. “The challenges we face,” he replied, “are solvable.”

It’s not an easy time for the world.
The world leaders’ gathering began amid growing global tensions, major wars in Gaza, Ukraine, and Sudan, and the possibility of a greater conflict in the Middle East. That, according to Guterres, is exacerbated by what he describes as spreading impunity among leaders and many people around the world.

“I cannot recall a time of greater peril than this,” Jordan’s King Abdullah II declared.

Guterres described the situation in Gaza as “a nonstop nightmare that threatens to take the entire region with it.” He claimed that increased air raids along the Israel-Lebanon border have brought Lebanon “to the brink.”He added there is no sign of an end to the war in Ukraine, which began after Russia invaded in February 2022. As a result, he added, “a brutal power struggle has unleashing horrific violence — including widespread rape and sexual assaults” or “a humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding as famine spreads.”

The UN head also cited “appalling levels of violence and human suffering” ranging from Myanmar and Congo to Haiti, Yemen, and beyond, as well as a rising terrorist threat in Africa’s Sahel region. He described the Summit of the Future, which came before Tuesday’s opening of the almost week-long global conference, as a first step. “But we have a long way to go.”

The world’s nations adopted a “Pact for the Future” at the two-day summit, which lays out a 42-page blueprint to begin addressing challenges ranging from combating climate change and poverty to putting limits on artificial intelligence and reforming the United Nations and other global institutions established after World War II to meet the needs and threats of the twenty-first century.

Guterres stated that meeting the challenges of a “whirlwind” requires confronting the three drivers of “unsustainability”: the uncertainty of unmanaged risks, the inequality that underpins injustices and grievances, and the impunity that undermines international law and the United Nations’ founding principles.

“A growing number of governments and others feel entitled to a ‘get out of jail free’ card,” he remarked, alluding to the popular board game Monopoly.

In his final speech to fellow leaders, US President Joe Biden acknowledged the challenges of Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, and other global hotspots, but remained hopeful.

“There will always be forces that pull our countries apart … a desire to retreat from the world and go it alone,” he explained. “Our task is to make sure that the forces holding us together are stronger than the forces pulling us apart.”

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, whose country speaks first in a tradition dating back to the early years of the United Nations, criticized Israel’s attacks in Gaza and Lebanon, saying, “The right to self-defence became a right for vengeance, which prevents a deal for the release of hostages and delays a cease-fire.”

Lula condemned the eighth consecutive year of global military spending exceeding $2.4 trillion. “Those resources could have been used to fight hunger and deal with climate changes,” he told reporters.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with Jordan’s Abdullah. Masoud Pezeshkian, Iran’s new president, was also on hand.

On Monday, Iran’s Shah accused Israel of desiring a greater Middle East war and preparing “traps” to draw his country into a larger confrontation. He cited the lethal explosions of pagers, walkie-talkies, and other electronic devices in Lebanon last week, which he blamed on Israel, as well as the death of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31, only hours after Pezeshkian’s inauguration.

“We don’t want to fight,” Iran’s president stated. “It’s Israel that wants to drag everyone into war and destabilise the region.” Iran backs both Hamas in Gaza and Lebanon’s Hezbollah terrorists.

Pushing the idea of ‘right makes might’
President David Miliband of the International Rescue Committee recalled that at the United Nations’ founding conference in San Francisco in 1945, then-US President Harry Truman pleaded with delegates to reject the premise of “might makes right” and replace it with “right makes might,” as enshrined in the U.N. Charter.

Head Of United Nations Calls Global Situation ‘Unsustainable’ As Annual Meeting Of Leaders Opens

“Almost 80 years later, we have seen the terrible consequences of the failure to flip this equation,” Mr. Miliband added. “In contexts like Gaza, Sudan and Ukraine, might is making right.”

Faced with escalating global humanitarian needs, unchecked violence, untreated climate change, and rising severe poverty, Miliband addressed world leaders, asking, “How will you strengthen, not weaken, the principles of the United Nations Charter for the next 80 years?”

The assembly’s annual meeting, which concludes on September 30, came after the two-day Summit of the Future, which adopted a blueprint for bringing the world’s increasingly divided nations together to address 21st-century challenges ranging from conflicts and climate change to artificial intelligence and women’s rights.

The 42-page “Pact for the Future” calls on leaders from the 193 United Nations member nations to put commitments into actions that improve the lives of the world’s more than 8 billion people.

“We are here to bring multilateralism back from the brink,” Mr. Guterres remarked.

He claimed that by signing the contract, leaders unlocked the door. “Now it is our shared destiny to pass through it. That necessitates action rather than mere agreement.”

Leaders involved in conflicts will talk.
Ukraine and its president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, were the centre of attention during last year’s United Nations General Assembly. However, as the first anniversary of Hamas’ deadly strike in southern Israel comes on October 7, the focus will undoubtedly be on the conflict in Gaza and the increasing violence across the Israeli-Lebanon border, which is now threatening to sweep throughout the Middle East.

On Thursday morning, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will address, followed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the afternoon.

Zelenskyy will be in the spotlight twice. He will speak Tuesday afternoon at a high-level meeting of the United Nations Security Council convened by the United States, France, Japan, Malta, South Korea, and the United Kingdom, whose foreign ministers are likely to attend. He will also speak to the General Assembly on Wednesday morning.

SOURCE | AP

World

Biden Escalates Ukraine War With Long-Range Missiles

Published

5 days ago

2024-11-18

Geoff Brown

The Kremlin announced on Monday that President Joe Biden’s decision to allow Ukraine to hit targets inside Russia with US military long-range missiles is “fuel to the fire” and will exacerbate international tensions.

Biden’s decision to allow Ukraine to employ US military long-range missiles to strike deep within Russia has raised concerns about growing tensions, with many fearing that this decision could lead to world conflict.

On Monday, with less than two months remaining in office, President Joe Biden authorized American-provided Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) to strike deep within Russia.

“It is obvious that the outgoing administration in Washington intends to take steps and they have been talking about this, to continue adding fuel to the fire and provoking further escalation of tensions around this conflict,” said Peskov, the spokesman for the president.

Peskov reminded journalists of a September statement by President Vladimir Putin, who stated that enabling Ukraine to target Russia would dramatically raise the stakes.

It would alter “the very nature of the conflict dramatically,” Putin stated. This would mean that NATO countries, the United States, and European countries would be at war with Russia.”

Peskov asserted that Western countries that deliver longer-range weaponry also provide targeting services to Kyiv. “This fundamentally changes the modality of their involvement in the conflict,” he said.

Ukraine War Escalation

In June, Putin threatened that if NATO permitted Ukraine to utilize the arsenal of its partners to attack Russian territory, Moscow would send longer-range weapons to others to strike Western targets.

“The Westerners supply weapons to Ukraine and say: ‘We do not control anything here anymore and it does not matter how they are used.'” Putin had said. “We can also say, ‘We supplied something to someone — and now we have no control over anything.'” “And let them think about it.”

Putin again emphasized Moscow’s willingness to deploy nuclear weapons if it perceived a threat to its sovereignty.

Biden’s decision will “mean the direct involvement of the United States and its satellites in military action against Russia, as well as a radical change in the essence and nature of the conflict,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry stated.

The new policy has unpredictable consequences. ATACMS, with a range of roughly 300 kilometers (190 miles), can travel deep behind Ukraine’s 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line, although their range is modest compared to other types of ballistic and cruise missiles.

President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on January 20, has not responded, but he won the election on promises to stop the conflict, and some people close to him have decried the action as a hazardous escalation.

Missile Decision Sparks Anger

The Military Industrial Complex appears to want to start World War III before my father has a chance to restore peace and rescue lives. We need to lock in those $Trillions. Life be damned!! Imbeciles!” Donald Trump Jr., the President-elect’s son, posted on X

“On his way out of office, Joe Biden is dangerously trying to start WWIII by authorizing Ukraine to use U.S. long-range missiles against Russia,” said Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., on X. “The American people gave a mandate on November 5 against these exact American last decisions.”

Rebekah Koffler, a former Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) officer and author of “Putin’s Playbook,” speculated that the stories were a “trial balloon to disrupt Trump” and that Biden may not have authorized the ATACMS strikes yet.

According to Dani Belo, PhD, Director of Security and International Relations at Global Policy Horizons Research Lab, Ukraine’s ability to currently hit Russian territory has the potential to escalate the war with Russia.

However, Donald Trump’s victory is likely to moderate the escalation.

There is speculation that Donald Trump’s administration would restrict military hardware deliveries to Ukraine, putting political pressure on Kyiv to resolve the crisis. This implies Ukraine has no motivation to escalate now and lose its fighting capability in a matter of months.

Russia sees no reason to escalate the situation at this time. Moscow expects that Trump’s administration will try to finish the war soon, so the Kremlin will likely take a wait-and-see approach until the new presidential administration takes office without significantly escalating the conflict. As a result, any escalation is unlikely.

Source: AP

Trump Shakes Up Pentagon Names Pete Hegseth Defence Secretary

Trump Shakes Up Pentagon Names Pete Hegseth Defence Secretary

World

A Court Filing Reveals Elon Musk Flatly Rejected OpenAI’s ICO in 2018.

Published

1 week ago

2024-11-15

Salman Ahmad

(VOR News) – Elon Musk, the billionaire and CEO of Tesla, claims in a subsequent court filing that was submitted on November 14 that he was successful in stopping OpenAI from doing an initial coin offering (ICO) in 2018.

According to the filing requirements, this information was disclosed.

Musk and his legal team have claimed that two of OpenAI’s founders, Greg Brockman and Sam Altman, tried unsuccessfully to create a token in early 2018 to help the company grow. To the best of our knowledge, this was the founders’ intention.

Elon Musk accurately described the scenario.

Elon Musk made the remark during the pertinent time period, according to the lawsuit’s accusations.

This, in his opinion, would lead to a significant decline in trust in OpenAI and everyone involved in the initial coin offering (ICO). These statements are extracted from his initial declaration.

A unique project backed by Altman, Worldcoin launched a token twenty-three years ago with the goal of creating digital identification for verified individuals.

Furthermore, the company in charge of token distribution was Worldcoin. Through the use of the token, Worldcoin was able to authenticate individual identities.

When OpenAI was first founded, it was a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating safe artificial general intelligence (AGI).

In this context, the acronym AGI stands for artificial global intelligence. “Musk has continuously voiced concern about the grave threat that these sophisticated systems pose to humanity,” his attorney wrote in the complaint. These sophisticated technologies represent a serious threat to humankind.

“Musk remains apprehensive regarding this threat.” “Musk regards these threats with the utmost seriousness.” “Elon Musk has harbored these concerns for an extended period.”

This led to Musk joining OpenAI’s board of directors and continuing to serve as co-chair of the board. Furthermore, he was appointed to that board of directors post.

Elon Musk contributed $44 million to the enterprise.

OpenAI declared in a March 5th news release that it was imperative that the company adopt a profit-making structure in order to obtain the necessary funding to achieve its objectives. In order to enable OpenAI to fulfill its objectives, this transition was necessary.

According to both the OpenAI statement and the amended filing, Elon Musk advocated for the combination of OpenAI and Tesla to help the artificial intelligence startup with its financial issues.

The aforementioned measures were implemented to mitigate the challenges that the organization was facing at that specific moment. Musk submitted his resignation as an OpenAI employee in February 2018.

He founded his own artificial intelligence company, which he named XAI, in the ensuing years. His efforts directly led to the achievement he achieved.

We are deeply disappointed that our friendship with someone we have always held in the highest respect has deteriorated.

As we started to make significant strides toward OpenAI’s goal on our own, this person, who had previously motivated us to achieve greater heights, abruptly predicted that we would fail, established a rival company, and filed a lawsuit against us, according to the group’s press release.

In August of this year, Musk filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and its CEOs, Altman and Brockman, claiming that they had violated federal RICO statutes, engaged in unfair competition, and committed fraud. OpenAI is the target of legal action taken by Elon Musk.

According to Elon Musk, they have engaged in additional illegal activity. Microsoft was named as one of the defendants in the dispute in the updated complaint, which was submitted on November 14.

It’s being presented as a case at the moment. Microsoft and OpenAI started working together in 2019, and Microsoft committed $1 billion in the partnership.

In July 2023, OpenAI’s native cryptocurrency, Worldcoin (WLD), was made available to the general public. Not too long ago, an article published by The Block disclosed this knowledge. When the market closed on November 15 at 11:36 p.m. Eastern Time (16:36 UTC), the price of a share of WLD was $2.21.

SOURCE: TB

World

Trump Appoints Robert F. Kennedy Jr to Head HHS

Published

1 week ago

2024-11-15

Geoff Brown

Trump Appoints Robert F. Kennedy Jr to Head HHS

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to run the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

President-elect Trump appointed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK Jr) to run the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), sending Democrats and Big Pharma allies into a tailspin.

“I am delighted to announce Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and medicine firms, which have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation regarding public health,” Trump stated in his announcement.

“The safety and health of all Americans is the most important role of any administration, and HHS will play an important role in ensuring that everyone is safe from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and food additives that have contributed to this country’s overwhelming health crisis.

Mr. Kennedy will restore these agencies to gold-standard scientific Research and Transparency traditions, stopping the Chronic Disease Epidemic and making America Great and Healthy Again!” Trump added.

Reactions to RFK Jr HHS Appointment

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) oversees the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Medicare, Medicaid, and the National Institutes of Health.

Kennedy is a former environmental justice lawyer who has recently started an anti-vaccine nonprofit. He ran for president as an independent candidate in 2024 but dropped out to join Trump’s closest circle.

House Republicans have reacted to Donald Trump’s nomination of former presidential contender Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health secretary.

Chip Roy, a Texas congressman, calls it “great news”. He tells me, “We need disruption throughout the federal government.” He’ll be fantastic at HHS [the Department of Health and Human Services] to do that.”

Roy adds that he expects Kennedy’s candidacy will clear the Senate.

“There’s been a few Kennedy’s in the Senate in the past so maybe there’ll be some legacy there that they will want to move him through,” he speculates.

South Carolina Congressman Ralph Norman concurs with Roy on Kennedy’s confirmation in the Senate: “I believe he was an excellent choice by the president, as have all of them. Kennedy is interested in, and passionate about, the medical industry. He will do a terrific job with it.”

According to Public Citizen, a progressive nonprofit group focused on consumer protection, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “is a clear and present danger to the nation’s health.”

He should not be allowed to enter the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), let alone be appointed director of the nation’s public health agency.”

“Donald Trump’s mishandling of public health policies during the Covid outbreak resulted in hundreds of thousands of deaths. “By appointing Kennedy as secretary of HHS, Trump is courting another policy-driven public health disaster,” the organization continued.

Apu Akkad, an infectious disease physician at the University of Southern California, described the statement as a “scary day for public health”.

Meanwhile, pharmaceutical stocks such as Pfizer and Moderna plummeted following news of Kennedy’s nomination for HHS Secretary, as investors considered his potential impact on vaccine sales.

Novavax and BioNTech finished down more than 7%, with almost all losses occurring when word of the selection broke—Novavax shares fell to $7.22, and BioNTech shares fell to $103.56.

Moderna’s stock closed 5.6% at $39.77, reaching its lowest point of the year.

Sanofi’s stock fell 3.4% to $47.82, continuing a weeks-long share price decline that began after the company’s latest earnings report last month.

Pfizer lost less than its competitors on Thursday, closing down 2.6% at $26.02, despite having its sharpest drop of the day immediately following the RFK Jr. announcement.