Newsletter V 2024
January 28st to February 3th
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| Current news+ | Background knowledge |
The PDF file "Nuclear Power Accidents" contains a number of other incidents from various areas of the nuclear industry. Some of the incidents were never published through official channels, so this information could only be made available to the public in a roundabout way. The list of incidents in the PDF file is therefore not 100 % identical with "INES and the disturbances in nuclear facilities", but represents an addition.
February 2008 (INES Class.?) NPP Paluel, FRA
February 2008 (INES 0 Class.?) Nuclear factory La Hague, FRA
1. February 2010 (INES Class.?) NPP Vermont Yankee, USA
4. February 2008 (INES 0) NPP Krümmel, GER
5. February 1958 (Broken Arrow) B-47 Tybee Island, USA
6. February 1974 (INES 4-5) Akw Sosnovy Bor, USSR
8. February 2004 (INES 0) NPP Biblis, GER
February 12, 2013 (North Korea's 3th nuclear test) P'unggye-ri, PRK
13. February 1960 (France's 1st atomic bomb test) Reggane, FRA
14. February 1950 (Broken Arrow) Convair B-36 British Columbia, CAN
16. February 2011 (INES 2) NPP Tricastin, FRA
22. February 1977 (INES 4) NPP Jaslovské Bohunice, SVK
28. February 1954 (6 hydrogen bomb tests) Bikini Atoll, USA
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We are looking for current information. If you can help, please send a message to: nuclear-world@reaktorpleite.de
3. February
Demonstrations | Right-wing extremism
More than 200.000 people against right-wing extremism
Tens of thousands of people protested against right-wing extremism in Germany. According to the police, there were 150.000 demonstrators in Berlin alone. Numerous people also took to the streets in other cities.
Under the motto “We are the firewall: an alliance against the right,” numerous people are once again protesting in Berlin against right-wing extremism and the AfD. The general meeting area at the Reichstag was “fully occupied,” the police wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “Please stop trying to get there.” There are “currently more than 150.000 people” in the assembly area and the alternative areas.
The organizers spoke of around 300.000 participants. 100.000 people registered. According to the police, all planned additional areas in the area have been released. The Bundestag subway station was closed, and there were huge crowds at other subway and S-Bahn stations in the city center...
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China | Solar energy | CO₂ emissions
1.700 GWh per year
Gigantic solar park in China generates electricity day and night
A gigantic solar park that can produce electricity day and night has been put into operation in China. The plant is expected to generate 1.700 GWh per year.
Gansu (China). The Aksa Huidong New Energy Solar Park recently went into operation in the Chinese province of Gansu. Thanks to a combination of several technologies to generate energy, the largest solar park of its kind can provide electricity around the clock. According to the China Global Television Network (CGTN), the system consists of 11.960 heliostats, i.e. large, computer-controlled mirrors.
[...] Solar energy is stored in salts
The receiver at the top of the tower receives the concentrated solar energy. The energy is used to heat a liquid mixture of salts. Salts can reach high temperatures and store thermal energy for long periods of time. The hot liquid is then used to produce steam, which is used to power a turbine that drives a generator, as in conventional coal, gas and nuclear power plants.
The biggest advantage of the hybrid approach of the Aksa Huidong New Energy Solar Park is that it can store solar energy in the form of thermal energy in order to produce electricity even in times without solar radiation. According to the operators, the solar park is expected to generate 1.700 GWh of electricity annually. This can save 507.000 tonnes of standard coal per year, which would normally produce around 1,47 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions.
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Dangerous waste illegal disposed of
Tesla is said to have illegally disposed of hazardous waste “intentionally and negligently”.
Tesla has averted lawsuits from 25 counties in the US state of California by paying $1,5 million. The allegations that have arisen that Tesla mishandled hazardous waste point to a fundamental problem.
Violation of health and safety regulations
This is reported by the AP news agency. At issue is a lawsuit that alleges the company "intentionally" and "negligently" disposed of materials that should have been handled with care.
California counties accuse Tesla of violating state health and safety regulations by disposing of, or causing to be disposed of, hazardous waste in locations not authorized to accept such materials.
[...] According to initial findings, this was not a simple accident or a one-off event - that became clear because more than two dozen districts wanted to take action against the supposedly illegally disposed of dangerous waste.
Experts emphasize that a large company like Tesla should have known better.
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Right to repair is right - under one condition
It must be as easy as possible for consumers to have devices repaired. But for the sake of the environment, there must also be limits.
Europe wants to move away from the throwaway mentality. By law, Brussels plans to grant consumers the “right to repair”. Representatives of the EU states have finally agreed on this. That's good and makes sense: 35 million tons of waste accumulate in Europe every year because products are not repaired but replaced with new goods.
Now the new requirements will not be able to prevent every single ton of this. But making repairs easier for consumers and holding manufacturers accountable is the right way to go.
[...] It will still take some time for the law to become a big hit anyway. The formal approval of Parliament and the EU states is considered a formality. However, it will likely take more time to implement the requirements into national law. Germany did not have to wait for Brussels in this regard. Now it's time to catch up on a lot. Because other countries like France are further ahead.
There has been a so-called “repair index” there since 2021, which, like the color scheme for energy efficiency, shows how easy a device is to repair. In Austria, the state promotes repairs: Anyone who has broken electrical and electronic devices repaired receives half of the repair costs back from the state, up to a maximum of 200 euros per repair...
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Health | Chemicals | harmful to reproduction
Cause still unclear
Researchers discover toxic plasticizer in urine samples
The substances have been banned or strictly regulated for years. Nevertheless, the Federal Environment Agency found dangerous plasticizers in numerous urine samples, including many children. How they can end up there in such large numbers is a mystery to the researchers.
The Federal Environment Agency (UBA) has discovered evidence of a dangerous plasticizer in the urine of numerous people in Germany, which has been strictly regulated and largely banned for years. In the currently ongoing 6th German Environmental Health Study, the metabolite MnHexP has been discovered in 28 percent of the samples, said UBA toxicologist Marika Kolossa. It is a breakdown product of the plasticizer di-n-hexyl phthalate (DnHexP). The reproductive-damaging metabolite was first discovered in samples in 2023. "You shouldn't find a substance like that in the body and we find it," said Kolossa.
[...] According to the results of animal experiments, the metabolite is a reproductively harmful substance, said Kolossa. It primarily affects the reproductive organs of male fetuses in the womb. But it could also be harmful to adults and increase the risk of diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity, which is shown by further animal experiments. Concentrations "that are so high that a health risk cannot be ruled out" have been discovered in individual people...
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Citizens' movement | well-fortified democracy
Demonstrations against the right:
Ehhh, CSU, argh, the Antifa!
The protest for democracy can become a citizens' movement. If organizers don't exclude. And participants don't expect everyone to agree.
A single parent, an IG metal member, a doctor and a sea rescuer come to a demo, and no: this is not the beginning of a mediocre joke, but possibly something great.
If hundreds of thousands of people in several German cities are joining together this Saturday under the motto "We are the firewall," it is because they are united by a common goal: to defend democracy. The signatories include the trade unions IG Metall, Ver.di and GEW as well as Pro Asyl, the Berlin Medical Association and the Protestant Church.
In the past few weeks there have been repeated debates about who is welcome at the demos against the AfD and right-wing extremism and who is not. For example, an organizer of the Munich demo declared that the CSU was undesirable, but Bavaria's anti-Semitism commissioner, a CSU MP, canceled his participation.
This is hardly surprising in a society that is losing the spaces in which people with different views meet. In which sports clubs and churches lose members and in Telegram and WhatsApp groups only messages that confirm one's own worldview are shared...
2. February
United States | Pakistan | Military | conspiracy
“Regime Change” in Pakistan: How the US Helped Overthrow Imran Khan
Former prime minister has to go to prison for ten years. Covert, US-led regime change preceded it. Leak shows what role Russia played in the Ukraine war. Guest post.
A major tool of US foreign policy is "covert regime change", that is, a secret action by the US government to overthrow the government of another country.
The removal of Khan from power
There are good reasons to believe that the US actions led to the ouster of Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan in April 2022, followed by his arrest on corruption and espionage charges and his sentencing this week to XNUMX years in prison for espionage.
The political aim is to prevent Pakistan's most popular politician from returning to power in the February 8 election.
The essence of covert operations, of course, is that they are secret and therefore can be denied by the US government. Even when the evidence comes to light through whistleblowers or leaks, which is very often the case, the US government rejects the authenticity of the evidence.
Media ignores real US conspiracy
The mainstream media generally ignores the story because it contradicts the official narrative. Since the editors want nothing to do with "conspiracy theories" or are content to be mouthpieces for state authorities, they give the US government wide latitude to carry out real conspiracies aimed at regime change...
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Protection of the Constitution | Maassen
Maaßen and the Office for the Protection of the Constitution:
Rating truly deserved
Hans-Georg Maaßen was the wrong person at the Office for the Protection of the Constitution from the start. A committee of inquiry into his term of office is now needed.
The Maaßen case shows once again: the Office for the Protection of the Constitution has a systematic problem. Hans-Georg Maaßen is not the first head of the secret service who not only has a lousy record, but also held a protective hand over right-wing extremist parties, groups and people.
[...] Under Maaßen the secret service was supposed to improve a lot, but he was obviously the wrong person for it: During his time in office, he held his protective hand over the AfD and is even said to have advised them on how they could strategically avoid being observed. Finally, he completely discredited himself with conspiracy stories after right-wing extremist hunts in Chemnitz in 2018, which he almost officially blew into the public eye...
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U.S. government | Sanctions | Settlers
Sanctions against settlers
The US has imposed sanctions on four West Bank settlers. Israel says it has killed “10.000 terrorists” in Gaza.
[...] The US government, meanwhile, has imposed sanctions on four Jewish settlers accused of taking part in violence against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank. The US Treasury Department released the names of the four Israelis on Thursday (local time), who are also accused of intimidation and destruction of property.
US President Biden has repeatedly expressed concern about the increase in violence by extremists, a government official in Washington said earlier. These actions pose a serious threat to peace and security stability in the West Bank, Israel and the Middle East...
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Green steel made from toxic red mud
Hydrogen plasma reduction extracts iron from the residual sludge from aluminum production
Double benefit: A new method renders the toxic red sludge from aluminum extraction harmless - and produces plenty of pure iron for steel production. This is made possible by reducing the iron oxide contained in the bauxite sludge using hydrogen plasma in an electric arc furnace. Within a few minutes, metallic, easily extractable iron is created, as the researchers report in “Nature”. The highlight: the process is quick, economically profitable and also renders the toxic heavy metals in the red mud harmless.
Steel and aluminum are among the most important metal raw materials in the modern world. But their production is anything but environmentally and climate-friendly: the steel industry is responsible for around seven percent of global CO2 emissions, most of which is released when oxidized iron ores are reduced to metallic iron. When extracting aluminum, the red mud that remains after the aluminum has been extracted from the bauxite causes problems. The highly alkaline mixture of various metal oxides and heavy metals is harmful to the environment and toxic.
[...] If you partially use renewable energies for hydrogen and electricity production, then the process is worthwhile if the red mud contains around 50 percent iron oxide. However, if you add the costs that normally arise for disposing of the red mud, for example through drying and landfill storage, the process is profitable from an iron oxide content of 35 percent in the bauxite sludge, as the team reports...
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Nuclear lobby | Renewables | WNISR
Nuclear lobbyist elected to the board of the Renewable Energy Research Association
The Union and FDP are trying to work together with the right-wing radical AFD to give nuclear energy a future again in Germany. They justify this with currently high electricity prices and a weak expansion of renewable energies.
The Union and the FDP have significantly hindered the expansion of renewable energies over the last ten years by joining forces with complaining opponents of wind power, particularly from the Federal Initiative for Reason, which is closely linked to the opaque right-wing spectrum around the AfD.
Nuclear energy in the world is on the decline
It is clear that, if you rely on facts instead of fake news, nuclear energy is far too expensive. A new building takes over 20 years, and the use of nuclear power is declining overall worldwide, like the recent one World Nuclear Industry Report shows.
Even in China, the country with the greatest expansion of nuclear energy, nuclear power only plays a marginal role compared to renewable energies. In China, an insignificant 2023 GW of new nuclear power was built in 1,2, but 278 GW of renewable energies.
But all of this reality leaves the nuclear community from politics, right-wing extremists and even in the research community cold. Rather, it is a method, especially among right-wing radicals in the global world, as well as in Germany, to ignore truths and instead spread lies, such as the alleged renaissance of nuclear energy...
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Dependencies | Natural gas | Security of supply
Expert Council for Energy Independence
To be on the safe side, break off the gas bridge more quickly
Replacing Russian natural gas with LNG sourced worldwide does not create a truly secure supply situation for Germany, warns the Energy Independence Expert Council. The committee has developed a concept for a faster phase-out of natural gas.
Why should Germany phase out natural gas more quickly? Because of climate protection, the first answer so far has been. The Energy Independence Expert Council apparently does not currently consider this argument to be very effective.
At least that is what the financing strategy for Germany's natural gas independence presented by the committee a few days ago suggests. The expert council, a voluntary association of experts, is coordinated by the Institute for Sustainable Economics (ZOE) and financed by the Climate Finance Fund.
The interdisciplinary group met in February 2022, the month Russia invaded Ukraine. A year later, the Council set out to develop an economic policy agenda for Germany's natural gas phase-out.
[...] Discussing climate policy on the surface was too narrow? When the report was presented a week ago, transformation researcher Maja Göpel also advocated looking at “positive things,” asking ourselves what Germany can do, and talking less about the climate and more about security of supply when it comes to natural gas.
Security of supply is the “basic material” of economics and the ability to shape politics, stated Göpel, who is a member of the ZOE advisory board but not of the specialist council.
For Jonathan Barth, ZOE director and speaker of the technical council, safety and reliability are also at the forefront when phasing out natural gas, as he emphasized during the presentation. The import of liquid natural gas creates new dependencies for Barth. Imports of LNG to Europe, especially from the USA and Qatar, have doubled in the last two years, he warned...
1. February
Slovakia | Demonstrations | Justice
Tens of thousands demonstrate again against judicial reform
In Slovakia, what are probably the largest demonstrations to date have taken place across the country against the planned judicial reform of Prime Minister Fico's left-wing national government. Around 30.000 people protested in Bratislava alone.
In Slovakia, thousands again demonstrated against the government of left-wing nationalist Prime Minister Robert Fico, which has been in office since the end of October. As the organizers told the TV news channel TA3, around 30.000 people are said to have gathered in the capital Bratislava alone. Several thousand people also followed the call of three opposition parties in 30 other cities across the country. This day of demonstration is likely to have been the largest so far in a wave of opposition protests that began in December.
[...] One of the most controversial reform contents is the abolition of a special public prosecutor's office responsible for organized crime and political crimes, planned by the three-party coalition because it was allegedly "politically abused" ...
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Iran | nuclear programme | uranium | Sirik
Doubts about civilian use
Iran begins construction of four nuclear power plants
Iran's nuclear program repeatedly leads to tensions with Western states and their allies. The regime in Tehran has now announced that it wants to build four new nuclear power plants in the south of the country.
According to the state news agency Irna, Iran has started building four nuclear power plants in the south of the country. The plants in the city of Sirik are expected to generate 5000 megawatts of electricity when completed, explained nuclear chief Mohammed Eslami in an interview with Irna published on Thursday. As a long-term goal, he set 20.000 megawatts that the country wants to produce through nuclear power.
Iran's nuclear program repeatedly leads to tensions between the Islamic Republic and Western states and their allies. As the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) noted late last year, Iran has ramped up production of highly enriched uranium. Experts consider the peaceful use of uranium, which is almost capable of weapons, to be implausible. Tehran asserts that it will only use its nuclear program for civilian purposes...
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Subsidies | Competition | Solar industry | Protectionism
China dictates solar expansion
Should we save little fish like Meyer Burger?
China dominates the construction of electric cars, the market for important raw materials such as lithium and now also the solar industry: The People's Republic produces so many solar modules that the prices for them fell by almost 50 percent last year. This makes the German energy transition significantly cheaper, but the Chinese PV flood is becoming a problem for European companies like Meyer Burger. The Swiss solar equipment manufacturer is threatening to close its factory in Freiberg, Saxony, if the federal government does not ensure fair competition. Julia Hammelehle from the Munich Security Conference is in favor of government support, even if Meyer Burger is only a small fish in global competition: "Better a company than none at all," says the political scientist in ntv's "Climate Laboratory". Because solar subsidies are not about “competitiveness” in the classic sense, but rather about protecting yourself from the use of technology as a means of political pressure.
ntv.de: Meyer Burger wants fair competition, which can actually only mean: They would like state aid to be able to keep up with cheap Chinese competitors, but also American ones, who also benefit massively from subsidies. Would that be a good idea?
Julia Hammelehle: From an economic point of view, not so much, but from a geopolitical point of view I definitely see a need to strengthen the solar industry in Europe. Not only producers of solar modules and solar cells like Meyer Burger, but also manufacturers of upstream products. But of course you should pay attention to whether costs and benefits are in harmony and look at how the industry is developing and how it can be strengthened beyond subsidies in areas such as digitalization and de-bureaucratization...
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Plastic | abstinence | CO2 emissions
Science calls for a radical departure from conventional plastic production
50 percent less plastic by 2050, from nine to 95 percent recycling rate: In order to solve the global plastic problem, the system must be completely overhauled
We live in a plastic age. Since plastic's rise to fame in the 1960s, the extremely versatile material has spread to the most remote corners of our planet, from the polar regions to the depths of the oceans. Even if the damage to the environment, biodiversity and people is now evident, there is no peak in sight for the ever-growing mountain of plastic.
In 2019, more than 353 million tons of plastic waste were produced. According to the OECD, this amount will rise to around one billion tonnes annually by 2060 if drastic measures are not taken. In 2019, only nine percent of waste was recycled worldwide. The majority ends up in landfills, is burned or ends up in the environment and waterways. The global plastic system also emits more than a gigaton of carbon dioxide per year - as much as the emissions of Europe's three largest economies: Great Britain, Germany and France. Without countermeasures, CO2 emissions could rise to four to five gigatons annually.
Avoid plastic
To turn things around, researchers from the Oxford Martin Program on the Future of Plastic at Oxford University and Europe's science academies are now calling for a move away from conventional plastic production. The background is the ongoing negotiations about an international plastics agreement, which are currently being conducted at the United Nations level.
[...] However, it will still take some time until a UN agreement is reached. The next round of negotiations will take place in April in Canada, and a final round is planned in South Korea at the end of 2024.
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Electromobility | Battery | E‑Fuels
UBA study on car drives
No E-Tiger in the tank
Cars and trucks with battery drives are the least damaging to the climate, a study for the Federal Environment Agency has now confirmed. E-fuels are therefore not a viable alternative for the road.
It is one of the most complex studies on the subject of e-mobility to date, and it underlines the fact that anyone who drives an electric car instead of a combustion engine today is protecting the climate, even though some of the electricity is still produced with coal and natural gas.
Cars powered by batteries are already around 40 percent more climate-friendly than cars with gasoline or diesel engines. E-fuels for combustion engines, on the other hand, perform poorly because their production is very energy-intensive.
The study was commissioned by the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) in order to find the right strategy for the "drive change" - not only for cars, but also for light commercial vehicles such as "Sprinters" and the like, as well as trucks up to the 40th -Tonner.
It turned out that electrically powered vehicles have "very clear advantages over combustion vehicles, especially when it comes to climate protection, even if they are operated with e-fuels, i.e. electricity-based synthetic fuels, in the future." The study was carried out as part of a three-year large-scale project at the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (Ifeu) in Heidelberg...
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1. February 2010 (INES Class.?) NPP Vermont Yankee, USA
Tritium and cesium had escaped from the nuclear power plant; these leaks and the associated costs eventually led to the shutdown of the plant. (Cost approx. US$821 million)
Wikipedia
Nuclear Power Plant_Vermont_Yankee
In February 2010, traces of 137Cs were found on the nuclear power plant site at levels three to XNUMX times higher, according to the Vermont government, than would be expected from the impact of nuclear weapons testing and the Chernobyl disaster. The operator Entergy then announced that it would remove the soil and dispose of it as nuclear waste.
On August 27, 2013, despite the extended license, the owner Entergy announced that the nuclear power plant was to be shut down in 2014 because continued operation was no longer economically viable. The reason for the Senate decision was a tritium leak in the plant's underground ...
Nuclear power accidents by country#United_States
Translation with https://www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
AtomkraftwerkePlag
In 2010, it turned out that radioactive water containing tritium had leaked into the groundwater. The operator incurred $821 million in costs. In addition, cesium-137 was detected on the site. That same year, as a result of soil contamination, the state of Vermont decided to phase out nuclear power and shut down Vermont Yankee...
Spiegel
US nuclear power plant - radioactive substances contaminate soil
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February 2008 (INES Class.?) Nuclear factory La Hague, FRA
Wikipedia
La Hague reprocessing plant
The highly active substances treated in this reprocessing plant constantly release explosive hydrogen, which threatens the tightness of the building when it reacts with oxygen. To avoid an explosion, the air in the building is freed from hydrogen by continuous circulation. For 3,5 hours, this circulation only worked in normal operation, both reserve air strands were not operational due to defects or maintenance work...
Greenpeace, under the supervision of a chartered technical surveyor, found ... 400 cubic meters of radioactive waste water are flushed daily through a four and a half kilometer pipe into the Alderney Strait via Herqueville. This operation is legal, since only the dumping of barrels with nuclear waste in the sea is prohibited, but direct discharge is not ...
AtomkraftwerkePlag
World's largest reprocessing plant
There have been a number of incidents in La Hague since it went into operation.
A study published by the European Parliament in 2001 lists events from 1989 to 2011 that were reported by the operator. Eight accidents were described in more detail ...
See in the EU study from 2001 on the Pages 112 and 113
There are comparable nuclear factories all over the world:
Uranium enrichment and reprocessing - facilities and sites
During reprocessing, the inventory of spent fuel elements can be separated from one another in a complex chemical process (PUREX). Separated uranium and plutonium can then be reused. As far as the theory...
Youtube
Uranium economy: Facilities for processing uranium
Reprocessing plants turn a few tons of nuclear waste into many tons of nuclear waste
All uranium and plutonium factories produce radioactive nuclear waste: uranium processing, enrichment and reprocessing plants, whether in Hanford, La Hague, Sellafield, Mayak, Tokaimura or anywhere in the world, all have the same problem: With every processing step More and more extremely toxic and highly radioactive waste is being produced ...
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February 2008 (INES Class.?) NPP Paluel, FRA
Wikipedia
Incorrect dispositions of insulation fittings were found in one of the four blocks in February, which had existed for more than five months. "This questioned the tightness of the containment," writes the ASN, "during the period in question, had an accident happened". A core melt could have resulted in releases.
Nuclear power accidents by country#France
Translation with https://www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
AtomkraftwerkePlag
The Paluel site is located in the Seine-Maritime department in northern France on the English Channel, northeast of Le Havre and northwest of Rouen.
In Paluel, four pressurized water reactors with an output of 1.382 MW each generate electricity, which went into operation between 1984 and 1986...
31. January
Funding | Photovoltaics | Call for tender
solar boom
Bid record for state photovoltaic tender
Solar energy is apparently attractive to many investors: According to the Federal Network Agency, more bids were received in the most recent round of tenders than ever before. This also has an impact on feed-in tariffs.
[...] In the Federal Network Agency's most recent open space tender for funding under the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG), the advertised amount was almost three and a half times oversubscribed. “There has never been such a large participation in a tender for open-space facilities,” said authority president Klaus Müller on Wednesday. The amount tendered as of December 1st was 1,61 gigawatts. However, bids with an output of 5,48 gigawatts were submitted.
The large crowds and the resulting competition led to low award values: The awards went to operators who wanted amounts between 4,44 cents and 5,47 cents per kilowatt hour of electricity as a so-called feed-in tariff. The average award value for this tender was 5,17 cents per kilowatt hour. That was 1,3 cents less than in the previous tender round...
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UN relief agency:
Hated, suspected, used
Twelve employees of the UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA are said to have been involved in the terrorist attack on Israel on October 7th. Important donor countries stop aid. What kind of organization is UNRWA? And is it finished now?
[...] The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Gaza has around 13.000 employees. The United Nations relief agency supplies 60 percent of the area's basic foodstuffs. Unemployment in Gaza is 45 percent. They found that people who work for UNRWA support around 25 relatives on average.
[...] Israel's security authorities accuse twelve of their employees of being involved in the Hamas terrorist attack on October 7th, and at least two directly in taking hostages. As a result, 17 of the most important donor countries have stopped their payments to UNRWA, including Germany. If money doesn't flow again quickly, the organization will soon have to stop work. And Gaza is threatened with a famine catastrophe in the middle of the war.
[...] Some observers see the revelation of the allegations as a kind of diversionary tactic. The daily Israel Hayom reports that the government withheld incriminating material about UNRWA employees for weeks...
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Imran Khan
Pakistan's former prime minister sentenced again to long prison shortly before elections
Imran Khan has already received long prison sentences in two cases - now a court has sentenced him to a further 14 years for embezzlement. The timing is no coincidence: Pakistan will elect a new parliament in eight days.
The party of former Prime Minister Imran Khan is massively weakened shortly before the parliamentary elections in Pakistan. A court sentenced Khan to 14 years in prison on Wednesday for embezzlement. The verdict came a day after he was sentenced to XNUMX years in prison in another case for revealing state secrets.
Khan's wife Bushra was also sentenced to 14 years in prison. The couple is accused of illegally selling government gifts. The ex-prime minister was sentenced to three years in prison in a corruption case last summer.
[...] He was forced out of office after losing a vote of no confidence in Parliament. It was said at the time that the military was trying to sideline him after he fell out with the generals over the appointment of senior security officials.
Khan has been at the center of protracted political unrest in nuclear-armed Pakistan, which has shone a spotlight on the powerful military's influence over civilian politics...
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Russia | RBMK reactor | shut down | Kursk NPP
The second unit of the Kursk I NPP was shut down after 45 years of operation
At 31:04 a.m. Moscow time on January 01, the second unit of the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, an RBMK-1000 reactor, reached the end of its life and stopped generating electricity. It was put into operation in 1979.
[...] The first unit in Kursk was shut down in December 2021. The service life of the power plant's four RBMK-1000 reactors was originally designed for 30 years, but was extended by 15 years as part of a service life extension.
[...] All four units in Kursk are scheduled to be shut down by 2031. They will be replaced by new reactors at the Kursk II site, located next to the original plant in western Russia, about 60 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. The plant will be equipped with four VVER-TOI reactors, the latest version of Russia's large light water reactors...
Translation with https://www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
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United States | Arms industry | Arms deals
US defense industry
Record sales made in USA
The USA exports military equipment worth 238 billion US dollars
The USA handled a record volume of arms exports last year. The US State Department said on Monday (local time) that the total value of military goods and services exported to states and companies had increased by 16 percent to more than 238 billion US dollars (around 219 billion euros).
[...] The largest buyer of US weapons last year was Poland with a total volume of 30 billion US dollars. In addition to Apache attack helicopters, the purchases included mobile rocket launchers (Himars), air and missile defense systems and Abrams main battle tanks. Last year, the Federal Republic bought Chinook helicopters from Boeing worth $8,5 billion and AMRAAM air-to-air missiles from the Raytheon Group worth $2,9 billion...
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Basic Law | Constitutional Court | Two-thirds majority
Changes to the Basic Law planned
Poland as a warning example: Why Traffic Light and the Union want to protect the Constitutional Court together
The governing parties SPD, Greens and FDP agree: They want to prevent the AfD from influencing the functioning of the Federal Constitutional Court if necessary - and are therefore aiming for a change to the Basic Law. The CDU and CSU are ready to take part, at least in principle.
[...] In fact, the Editorial Network Germany (RND) learned on Monday that the CDU and CSU are in principle prepared to follow the traffic light factions and change the Basic Law in such a way that the highest German court is protected from attacks by the AfD in an emergency can. This would only be possible together because it requires a two-thirds majority in the Bundestag and Bundesrat. The project is a reaction to the rise of the partly right-wing extremist party and the recently announced plans for “remigration”. But it is also a reaction to developments in Poland, Israel and the USA, where right-wing populists have sometimes successfully influenced the judiciary. This should be prevented in Germany...
30. January
Petition | Fundamental Rights | right to vote
More than 1,6 million people are calling for Höcke's basic rights to be withdrawn
No more active and passive voting rights: A petition to deprive Björn Höcke of basic rights finds a lot of supporters. It is scheduled to be handed over on Thursday.
According to the Basic Law, fundamental rights can be forfeited if, for example, a person abuses their right to freedom of expression to fight against the free democratic basic order. The petition was started a good two months ago and gained considerable momentum after the Potsdam meeting of radical right-wing activists and extremists with AfD officials became known.
A new state parliament will be elected in Thuringia in September. In surveys, the AfD is clearly in the lead there. A red-red-green coalition currently governs there under Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow (The Left).
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Judgment in the cum-ex proceedings
Top lawyer Johannemann should go to prison for three and a half years
The verdict has been passed against former Freshfields lawyer Ulf Johannemann in the Cum-ex scandal. The influential tax lawyer who advised Maple Bank on cum-ex transactions is to be sentenced to three and a half years in prison for serious tax evasion.
In the multi-billion dollar tax scandal surrounding cum-ex stock transactions, the Frankfurt Regional Court has handed down the verdict against a former top lawyer from the major law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer. Ulf Johannemann received a prison sentence of three years and six months.
As an advisor to the Maple Bank, which later collapsed into bankruptcy, Johannemann is said to have made it possible for years to deceive the tax authorities with the stock deals using “courtesy reports”. He was accused of aiding and abetting serious tax evasion. The trial, for the first time, concerned the criminal liability of a tax advisor at a major law firm in the complex of cum-ex stock deals...
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Advisor to the Federal Government
“Economic approach” with a push to loosen the debt brake
Berlin · The debt brake is causing a lot of conversation. Many regulations are strict - the “economic wise men” have suggestions for easing them.
Important economic policy advisors to the federal government are calling for a comprehensive easing of the debt brake. The current regulation is unnecessarily strict, said the chairwoman of the Advisory Council for the Assessment of Overall Economic Development, Monika Schnitzer, to the German Press Agency. If the debt brake is left as it is, the debt ratio will fall much more than necessary in the next few decades...
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lobbyists | Corruption | Transparency
“There are some open flanks”: Germany is stagnating in the corruption index
When democratic structures and an independent judiciary are missing, corruption flourishes. Germany is doing pretty well in an international comparison. However, there is still a need for improvement.
In a global comparison, Germany remains one of the ten countries with the least corruption. This emerges from the “Corruption Perceptions Index 2023”, which the organization Transparency International published on Tuesday. In the international ranking, which is based on assessments by managers, experts and institutions, the Federal Republic remains in ninth place.
However, Transparency also sees a need to catch up in Germany: for example, loopholes would have to be closed in order to be able to take better criminal action against cases of bribery of members of parliament. The SPD, Greens and FDP had already agreed in the coalition agreement to make the criminal offense of bribery and bribery of members of parliament more effective - but the implementation of this project is a long time coming. In addition, Transparency calls for an improved lobby register that makes clear the concrete influence of lobbyists on legislation...
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Constitutional Court | Democracy | traffic light coalition
Protection from extreme parties
The Union also wants to secure the Constitutional Court
Extreme parties and enemies of democracy could eliminate the highest German court relatively easily. The traffic light coalition is therefore considering better protecting the monitoring body. The Union signaled support.
The Federal Constitutional Court is the highest judicial authority for control and one of the central pillars of democracy. It protects the constitutional order based on the Basic Law. But it is also vulnerable. Politically, it would be comparatively easy to eliminate; all that is needed is a simple political majority.
Extreme parties and “enemies of democracy” could have an interest in this. So what should you do if these forces become ever stronger in Germany?
Union would have to agree
The traffic light coalition is therefore considering better protecting Germany's highest court as a precautionary measure. For example, by changing the Basic Law, but this would require the help of the largest opposition faction, i.e. the Union.
And that's where support comes from...
29. January
Last Generation | Road blockades | Glue
Climate activism:
Last generation doesn't want to block roads anymore
The climate activists of the last generation want to change their protest strategy: Instead of sticking to the streets, they want to publicly confront politicians.
Last Generation activists have announced an end to the road blockades. “From now on we will protest in a different form – but it will remain unignorable,” said the group. From March onwards, climate activists are planning to call for meetings across the country. The “chapter of sticking and roadblocks ends with this.” Two years ago, the group began blockades in which they stuck themselves to the road.
Now the Last Generation wanted to “intensify the direct confrontation of those responsible for climate destruction in the future,” the activists said. Specifically, politicians and other decision-makers are to be confronted “publicly and in front of cameras.” In addition, the activists say they want to “visit places of fossil destruction for our protest.”
The group attracted nationwide attention with its protests in museums, stadiums and ministries. In several cities, the activists temporarily paralyzed traffic on important roads. They often stuck themselves to the asphalt in order to maximize the time until the police could get them off the road. This caused great criticism in society and politics...
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Israel: Right-wing government members call for “voluntary emigration” for Palestinians
At a meeting on Sunday, right-wing extremist ministers and MPs apparently discussed plans to repopulate Gaza and expel its residents in an exuberant mood.
[...] Presented at the meeting was a fairly concrete plan of expulsion for the Gaza Strip and the establishment of settlements in the north, on the southern coast, in Khan Yunis and Rafah. The beneficiaries are of course supposed to be ultra-Orthodox settler extremists. Signs were waved with the text: “Only transfer will bring peace.” Ben Gvir, who has always advocated ethnic cleansing, shouted at the supporters of transfer, another word for expulsion or deportation: “You are right. To encourage them to leave here voluntarily." He called on Netanyahu to find "a moral solution to the humanitarian problem"; it was now time to repopulate the Gaza Strip or "go home to Gush Katif and Northern Samaria." to ensure safety...
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Democracy | Right-wing extremists | Fascists
Elfriede Jelinek: I hear a monster breathing
Elfriede Jelinek on the rise of the right-wing extremists, the chiseling at the constitutional arch and disasters on the ideological battlefields
I already said it at the last demonstration against right-wing extremism and fascism, I feel strange, like a ventriloquist - that's what I'm saying now - who lets his own voice speak like someone else's, but which has always spoken. I said it, I'm saying it now, how many times will I have to say it? May?
[...] It was obviously so beautiful under the Nazis, who they no longer knew, but about whom they have an unshakable idea. They want to rebuild this society, promises the talented right-wing radical from a right-wing NGO, as Herbert Kickl, party chairman of the FPÖ, calls it, in his hatred of NGOs that have made it their mission to improve living conditions, no, that's a complete one new NGO that just wants to improve its own situation and make itself the boss, it doesn't care about anyone else, they probably all have to go anyway. So you want to make yourself master of us.
[...] Orbán has already said goodbye to democracy, so light-heartedly that they hardly notice it there, otherwise they would all be on the streets against him every day. And it will happen here too, almost unexpectedly, society will be transformed and will also believe that it has changed itself so that people have a better life, of course among themselves, that is always promised.
I hear a monster breathing, I hear the breath of democracy growing weaker. I'm glad you're all here and want to breathe new life into it. I hope it's not too late.
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CO2 emissions | avoidance | CCS
Environmental associations
Above-ground dispute over underground CO₂ repositories
A thesis paper on CCS technology, on which the environmental organizations WWF and Nabu worked, is met with opposition. CO2 capture extends the business models of the oil and gas industry.
The thesis paper is called: “Industrial transformation from a single source”. It is exciting because it represents an unusual alliance for climate protection in which the industrial association BDI, the German Federation of Trade Unions (DGB) and the large nature conservation organizations Nabu and WWF have come together.
But it is also causing trouble in the eco-scene. The reason is that the two environmental organizations in the alliance also advocate underground storage of carbon dioxide, the so-called CCS process. Others such as BUND, Greenpeace and eco-researchers oppose this.
[...] The thesis paper states that the technologies should be used "priority" in areas where CO2 emissions cannot be avoided based on the current technical status. These include, for example, the cement industry, glass production and waste incineration.
However, the alliance also emphasizes that reducing greenhouse gas emissions must be the top priority. The paper says: “We stand behind the principle of CO2 avoidance and reduction before capture.” ...
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Attack on Israel:
Ten UNRWA employees are said to have belonged to Hamas
Employees of the UNRWA aid agency are said to have taken part in the attack on Israel on October 7th. A US newspaper is now reporting in detail what they are accused of.
It's about taking hostages, weapons and a massacre in a kibbutz with 97 dead: The New York Times According to its own statements, it has seen documents that show what specific accusations Israel has made against it Employees of the UN Palestinian relief agency UNRWA raises. The US government is said to have received the documents from Israel on Friday.
Accordingly, Israel accuses twelve UNRWA employees of being involved in the attacks on October 7th, in which around 1.200 people were killed in Israel and 240 others were abducted to the Gaza Strip. Ten of the accused are said to be members of Hamas. Another suspect is said to be associated with the terrorist organization Islamic Jihad, which was also involved in the October 7 attacks.
The UN aid agency has now separated from nine of the accused. According to UNRWA, two more are dead. Several countries, including the USA and Germany, have stopped their payments to the aid organization in light of the allegations...
28. January
Japan | Fukushima | Fuel assemblies | Fukushima Daiichi
Third postponement
Recovery of fuel elements from Fukushima Daiichi postponed for the third time
The recovery of molten fuel from the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has been postponed for the third time. The reason is again a robot arm.
The Japanese government and operator TEPCO said the plan to begin a test in the power plant's No. 2023 rector by the end of fiscal 2 in March had to be canceled due to insufficient precision of the robotic arm.
Robotic arm still too imprecise for recovering fuel elements from Fukushima Daiichi
The recovery is carried out remotely; an important tool is a robot arm that is used to remove the debris in the reactor. A new attempt to recover the fuel elements is scheduled to begin by October, using an alternative device...
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Climate & Environment | Sahra Wagenknecht | Oskar Lafontaine | Migration
First party conference at BSW:
Feel-good oasis for old leftists
The “Alliance Sahra Wagenknecht” relies programmatically on nostalgia and ignores problems such as the climate crisis. Nevertheless, it is good that the new party exists.
Wagenknecht’s new party doesn’t want to be “left” or “right,” and it certainly doesn’t want to be “Left 2.0,” says its namesake and top woman. But as their first party conference in Berlin has now shown, the new “Alliance Sahra Wagenknecht” is exactly that: “a Left 2.0.” Or better: a nostalgic left that doesn't want to deal with newfangled gender, migration or climate stuff. This can be seen in its core staff, which so far consists predominantly of former members of the Left Party. This was also evident in the topics that were the focus of the tightly organized party conference. And it was also evident in how disciplined controversial questions, contradictions and differences were ignored. It was a feel-good oasis for graying old leftists.
As sympathetic as the longing for the social democratic peace and social policy of the 70s, which Oskar Lafontaine explicitly refers to, it is questionable whether that is enough to meet the challenges of the present. And as understandable as the desire for a return to the clarity of the nation state is, it does not help one find one's way in a global world. How is Germany supposed to find an independent role between Russia and the USA if the EU is weakened in favor of strong individual states, each with their own national interests? Can Germany do it alone? It is also unclear how one will address the labor shortage and finance the welfare state if migration is to be limited. Global warming with its dramatic consequences is simply ignored: the combustion engine simply continues to run and the gas heater stays in...
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Energy transition | Network expansion
Network expansion is not making progress
Delay in the energy transition costs billions
Too little green electricity is produced in the south and too much in the north. But due to the slow expansion of the network, there are no lines for transporting excess electricity. The result: billions in costs - which also affect electricity prices.
The German energy industry is expecting additional billions in costs to stabilize the German power grid in the next few years. The main causes include the delay in grid expansion and the insufficient expansion of renewable energies in the south compared to the high demand.
According to associations, companies and economists, these factors will make complex “network congestion management” necessary in the coming years...
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PFAS | Poison of eternity | Ban PFAS
PFAS in ski wax: Fast chemistry that sticks everywhere
“Fluorescent wax” has been banned in several ski competitions since this season. This shows how difficult it is to get rid of PFAS.
“It’s okay,” you might say. And at the same time “Finally!”. What was most talked about in the ski circuit this season was new regulations. “Fluorowax”, i.e. ski wax with fluorine content, is now banned.
At least in the professional and competition sectors, per- and polyfluorinated alkyl compounds (PFAS) are no longer permitted in ski wax. The ban on toxic, reproductively harmful and sometimes carcinogenic substances had already been postponed for a year. Switzerland has so far only adopted part of the new rules. The ban does not apply to popular and hobby sports.
PFAS fluorocarbons are widespread worldwide. They pollute the soil, water and air. Since PFAS do not break down in nature, they continue to accumulate. The greatest accumulation of PFAS occurs in the food chain. This is shown, for example, by measurements of fish in Graubünden lakes. The PFAS levels are particularly high in fish from Lake Sils. Probable cause: ski wax...
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Party ban | well-fortified democracy | Financing | Gun license
Party executive resolution
The Left Party wants immediate measures against the AfD
The Left Party is in favor of banning the AfD. However, this could take a long time. That is why the party is now proposing some immediate measures. This involves, among other things, the issuing of firearms licenses.
The Left Party wants the AfD youth organization Junge Alternative (JA) to be banned. This emerges from a decision by the Left party executive committee on Saturday, which SPIEGEL has received.
"It is understandable that there are now calls for a ban on the AfD," the paper says. A ban on the AfD or individual state associations must be carefully examined and, if the conditions are met, the process must be initiated: "But that will take a considerable amount of time claim."
However, immediate measures are required "to deprive the AfD of its effectiveness and ability to act," the resolution continues...
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Right-wing extremists | Deportation | Entry
Right-wing extremism:
Martin Sellner is apparently threatened with deportation if he re-enters the country
According to a report, the federal police have put out a wanted notice for the Austrian right-wing extremist. The city of Potsdam is also considering a formal entry ban.
According to a media report, the Austrian right-wing extremist Martin Sellner is threatened with deportation if he enters Germany again. The Federal Police had already made a corresponding entry in the internal wanted database over the course of the week, reported Spiegel, citing security circles. If Sellner is checked by officials at the border, he could be refused further travel after consultation with the Federal Police Headquarters. According to information from security circles, the basis of the entry was a danger forecast by the police, the report said...
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The United States, the US foreign policy and the military-industrial complex
US foreign policy: profit over peace?
Joe Biden's foreign policy prescription is war, says our guest author. Eisenhower once defended himself against the arms industry, Biden failed. How could this happen?
In foreign policy, the President of the United States has two main tasks: The first is to rein in the military-industrial complex, which is constantly pushing for war. And the second task is to temper allies' expectations that the United States will go to war on their behalf.
Some wise presidents have accomplished some of this, but most have failed at both tasks. Joe Biden has completely failed in this regard.
Eisenhower's influence on war and peace
One of the wisest presidents was Dwight Eisenhower. At the end of 1956 he was faced with two crises at the same time.
The first was a disastrous, misguided war launched by Britain, France and Israel to overthrow the then Egyptian government and regain control of the Egyptian-nationalized Suez Canal.
At the time, Eisenhower forced his allies to stop this brazen and illegal attack, including through a U.S.-sponsored United Nations General Assembly resolution.
The second crisis was the uprising against Soviet rule in Hungary in 1956. Although Eisenhower sympathized with the uprising, he wisely kept the United States out of Hungary, thereby avoiding a dangerous military confrontation with the Soviet Union.
Eisenhower against the military-industrial complex
Eisenhower's historical farewell speech to the American people in January 1961 drew public attention to the growing power of the military-industrial complex. There it says:
In government deliberations, we must guard against the military-industrial complex gaining undue influence, whether this is intentional or not. The possibility of a catastrophic expansion of unjustified power exists and will continue to exist in the future.
We must never allow this to endanger our freedoms and our democratic processes. We must not take anything for granted. Only a vigilant and informed citizenry can ensure that our vast defense industry cooperates with a peace policy that preserves our security and freedom.
The unstoppable power of the CIA
Even Eisenhower failed to put the military-industrial complex and in particular its foreign secret service, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), in its place. To date, no US president has achieved this.
The CIA was founded in 1947 and has two functions. The first and best known is that of a normal foreign intelligence service.
A second task, however, is leading a secret army for the president, and this task had fatal consequences. In carrying out these missions, the CIA's activities from Eisenhower's time to the present have resulted in one catastrophic failure after another, including coups, assassinations, and staged "color revolutions," all of which have brought endless chaos and destruction to the world.
Kennedy's fight for peace
After Eisenhower, it was John F. Kennedy who mastered the highly dangerous Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. He was able to prevent nuclear Armageddon because he defied his own warmongering advisors and achieved a peaceful resolution to the crisis with the Soviet Union.
The following year, against opposition from the Pentagon, he managed to negotiate a partial nuclear test ban treaty with the Soviet Union and have it ratified in the US Senate, which helped save the US and the Soviet Union from the brink of war.
Many believe that Kennedy's peace initiatives were the reason for his assassination by criminal CIA agents. Biden joins the long list of US presidents who have kept thousands of documents secret or redacted, so that the attack has not been fully solved to this day.
Biden's failure on the military complex
Sixty years later, the military-industrial complex has a firm grip on US foreign policy. As I recently described, foreign policy has become a plaything of insiders, with the complex controlling the White House, the Pentagon, the State Department, the congressional armed services committees and, of course, the CIA, who all work closely with the major defense companies.
Only an exceptional US president could oppose the endless profit-seeking of this gigantic war machine.
Unfortunately, Biden is not even making an attempt in this direction.
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The map of the nuclear world
Lots of targets ...
The “Internal Search”
with the search terms
United States | US foreign policy | Military-industrial complex
brought the following results, among others:
January 20, 2024 - The defense industry, not the economy, benefits from Ukraine aid
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August 28, 2023 - Chomsky: US foreign policy driven by fear of China's rise
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February 20, 2022 - America's disastrous 60-year war
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The search engine Ecosia is planting trees!
Search terms = US foreign policy + military-industrial complex
https://www.ecosia.org/search?q=US-Außenpolitik
https://www.ecosia.org/search?q=Militärisch-industrieller%20Komplex
Bpb - Federal Agency for Civic Education
The USA between internationalism and isolationism
The USA is the most important global power. But their foreign and security policy always seems to oscillate back and forth between the two extremes of internationalism and isolationism. How does this happen?
What ideas, indeed traditions, underlie the pendulum swings of US foreign policy? And what other factors influence the USA's external behavior? There are many different answers to the question of what determines the foreign and security policy of states.
[...] The isolationist attitude
Looking back at the 246-year history of the United States of America, the predominant attitude towards the international system - at least over time - was isolationist. Founding President George Washington asked in his farewell speech in 1796: "Why quit our own to stand upon foreign ground?" (Why give up your own to stand on someone else's soil?)
The idealistic isolationism that resonates here was a basic idea of Thomas Jefferson, third President of the USA from 1801 to 1809. In this tradition, the focus is inward-looking and represents the conviction that only through a healthy and functioning community can the economic opportunities of the USA flourish. Jeffersonians appeal to the idealism of Americans to shape their own nation into a “more perfect union,” as it says in the preamble to the US Constitution. In order to be seen as a role model in the world, one's own perfection is the focus of attention, while foreign and security policy entanglements or even war should be avoided at all costs.
[...] The international attitude
Overall, the era of US internationalism was a success story for the USA. The entry into the Second World War in December 1941 marked the beginning of the end of the previously significant isolationism and after the war the USA rose to become the world order and leading Western power.
Realist internationalism was particularly helpful in this development. Its main representative is Alexander Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury of the USA (1789-1795) and opponent of Thomas Jefferson. In complete contrast to the Jeffersonians, the Hamiltonians see the preservation and expansion of economic interests as a priority over community development. In order to achieve this, economic power needs a military equivalent that knows how to protect the former in case of doubt. The principle of freedom of the seas and sea routes goes back to this tradition and the idea of free trade - admittedly from a position of strength - finds its most ardent advocates here.
The “Battleship America” symbolically embodies the US sense of mission and the projection of power and greatness. The Monroe Doctrine of the same name, which goes back to the fifth President of the USA, James Monroe (1817-1825), is considered a pioneer of this tradition that largely determined US foreign policy in the 20th century...
Wikipedia
Foreign Policy of the United States
The foreign policy of the United States of America has traditionally oscillated between two opposing strategies, isolationism and internationalism, although the former has not been pursued since the end of the Second World War.
The United States is largely responsible for the establishment and continued existence of various intergovernmental organizations such as the United Nations, NATO, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. In addition, a large number of globally active civil society actors operate from the territory of the United States.
Both the principles and practice of the foreign policy of the United States, as the only remaining superpower with global interests since the collapse of the Soviet Union, are controversially discussed domestically and worldwide.
Since the beginning of the 19th century, the United States has carried out interventions to advance its foreign policy interests in a number of countries (See also: United States involvement in changes of government abroad and List of United States military operations)...
[...] Characteristics and characteristics
We speak of a military-industrial complex when phenomena of this kind occur in a society:
- strong lobbying work by representatives of the military industry,
- numerous personal contacts between representatives of the military, industry and politics,
- intensive exchange of personnel between the leading positions in the military, business and state administration, especially when representatives of the military or politics move to significantly better paid positions in this industry,
- intensive research in the area of innovative weapon systems, significantly supported by government contracts,
- targeted influence on democratic control bodies and public opinion through an exaggerated security ideology.
- Militarized foreign policy
For Alex Roland, the F-35 stealth fighter project reflects the current state of the military-industrial complex in the USA, which he personally would prefer to call the “Military-Industrial-Congressional Complex”. Although the threat posed by drones, cyber warfare and military robots to national security is significantly greater, more money has flowed and continues to flow into the most expensive arms project of all time than into these 3 areas combined. Despite the explosion in costs and considerable doubts about its combat value, because the controversial stealth capability comes at the expense of operational readiness, speed, range, maneuverability and weapons equipment, the project is immune to being canceled by the military-industrial complex...
YouTube
Keyword = military-industrial complex
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Militärisch-industrieller Komplex
Why We Fight - America's Wars - The Military-Industrial Complex - 01:38:43
Playlist - radioactivity worldwide ...
This playlist contains over 150 videos on the topic of atoms*
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Newsletter IV 2024 - January 21nd to 27th
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