Latest news with #NSC
Canada News.Net
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Canada News.Net
Officials: Russia strategy group disbanded amid Trump frustration
WASHINGTON, D.C.: A quiet shift inside the Trump administration has stalled a key diplomatic initiative aimed at pushing Russia toward peace talks with Ukraine. According to three U.S. officials, a working group formed earlier this year to explore ways to increase pressure on Moscow has been quietly shelved — a casualty of dwindling presidential interest and sweeping staff changes. Set up by high-ranking members of the White House National Security Council (NSC), the group included officials from the State Department, Pentagon, Treasury, and intelligence community. Its mission was to craft strategies for tightening the screws on Moscow and boosting U.S. leverage in negotiations. However, the group lost momentum by May, as President Donald Trump grew increasingly disillusioned with the pace of progress. "It lost steam toward the end because the president wasn't there," said one U.S. official familiar with the matter. "Instead of doing more, maybe he wanted to do less." The group's demise, which has not been previously reported, adds to growing concern in Europe about Trump's approach to Russia, particularly ahead of a key NATO summit this month. On June 16, speaking at the G7 in Canada, Trump repeated that removing Russia from the old G8 alliance had been a mistake. The final blow came about three weeks ago when most of the NSC's Ukraine team was dismissed in a broader White House shake-up. Among those removed was Andrew Peek, the top NSC official for Europe and Russia. Though it's unclear who ordered the effort to halt, officials say the scale of NSC personnel cuts made its continuation impractical. While the group never finalized its recommendations, officials say ideas on the table included economic deals to loosen post-Soviet countries' ties to Moscow, covert operations, and incentives for Kazakhstan to enforce sanctions better. The Kazakhstani embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment. The working group had emerged in March or April as some of Trump's advisers began questioning Putin's willingness to deal and hoped Trump might shift to a tougher stance. In late March, Trump told NBC News he was "furious" and "pissed off" at Putin's comments about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. An April 1 NSC statement to Reuters cited "deep frustration with the Russian government over negotiations." But frustration eventually gave way to fatigue. Despite campaign promises to end the war on "day one," Trump has grown increasingly doubtful about his ability to deliver. Officials say he has recently floated abandoning U.S. mediation efforts altogether. Meanwhile, Trump has seen little success in other peace efforts, including in the Middle East, where tensions have escalated sharply between Iran and Israel. A March Reuters report also revealed that parts of the U.S. government had suspended work on countering Russian disinformation and sabotage.
Canada Standard
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Canada Standard
Trump admin quietly shutters Russia pressure group, sources say
WASHINGTON, D.C.: A quiet shift inside the Trump administration has stalled a key diplomatic initiative aimed at pushing Russia toward peace talks with Ukraine. According to three U.S. officials, a working group formed earlier this year to explore ways to increase pressure on Moscow has been quietly shelved — a casualty of dwindling presidential interest and sweeping staff changes. Set up by high-ranking members of the White House National Security Council (NSC), the group included officials from the State Department, Pentagon, Treasury, and intelligence community. Its mission was to craft strategies for tightening the screws on Moscow and boosting U.S. leverage in negotiations. However, the group lost momentum by May, as President Donald Trump grew increasingly disillusioned with the pace of progress. "It lost steam toward the end because the president wasn't there," said one U.S. official familiar with the matter. "Instead of doing more, maybe he wanted to do less." The group's demise, which has not been previously reported, adds to growing concern in Europe about Trump's approach to Russia, particularly ahead of a key NATO summit this month. On June 16, speaking at the G7 in Canada, Trump repeated that removing Russia from the old G8 alliance had been a mistake. The final blow came about three weeks ago when most of the NSC's Ukraine team was dismissed in a broader White House shake-up. Among those removed was Andrew Peek, the top NSC official for Europe and Russia. Though it's unclear who ordered the effort to halt, officials say the scale of NSC personnel cuts made its continuation impractical. While the group never finalized its recommendations, officials say ideas on the table included economic deals to loosen post-Soviet countries' ties to Moscow, covert operations, and incentives for Kazakhstan to enforce sanctions better. The Kazakhstani embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment. The working group had emerged in March or April as some of Trump's advisers began questioning Putin's willingness to deal and hoped Trump might shift to a tougher stance. In late March, Trump told NBC News he was "furious" and "pissed off" at Putin's comments about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. An April 1 NSC statement to Reuters cited "deep frustration with the Russian government over negotiations." But frustration eventually gave way to fatigue. Despite campaign promises to end the war on "day one," Trump has grown increasingly doubtful about his ability to deliver. Officials say he has recently floated abandoning U.S. mediation efforts altogether. Meanwhile, Trump has seen little success in other peace efforts, including in the Middle East, where tensions have escalated sharply between Iran and Israel. A March Reuters report also revealed that parts of the U.S. government had suspended work on countering Russian disinformation and sabotage. The White House, Treasury, Pentagon, State Department, and the embassies of Russia and Ukraine all declined to comment.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
ArcelorMittal completes the acquisition of Nippon Steel Corporation's interest in AM/NS Calvert
18 June 2025, 19:30 CET In accordance with the definitive Equity Purchase Agreement (the 'EPA') signed between ArcelorMittal (the 'Company') and Nippon Steel Corporation ('NSC') on 11 October 2024, the Company confirms that it has completed the acquisition (the 'transaction') of NSC's 50% equity stake in AM/NS Calvert, with ArcelorMittal already holding the balance. The facility, now renamed ArcelorMittal Calvert, was originally acquired by ArcelorMittal and NSC in 2014 from ThyssenKrupp for total consideration of $1.55 billion. The operation was originally built at a cost of approximately $5 billion. It commenced operations in 2010 and has a flat rolled steel capacity of 5.3 million metric tonnes, annually. It is one of the most advanced steel finishing facilities in North America, with assets that include: State-of-the-art hot strip mill (HSM) designed to roll advanced high strength steels (AHSS), Line Pipe & Stainless products Continuous Pickling Line (CPL) and coupled Pickle Line-Tandem Cold Mill (PLTCM) optimized for auto production (including exposed) Coating and Continuous Annealing Lines, galvanized, galvanneal, aluminized, and cold rolled, which can supply advanced automotive grades including Gen3 AHSS and Press Hardened Steel (PHS). Since the acquisition in 2014, more than $2 billion in capex investments have been made to improve operational efficiency and enhance product offerings to the U.S. automotive and energy markets. Strategic investments include additional slab bays and cranes, a state-of-the-art logistics center to support high-volume pipe production and increased coil size, capability enhancements to the three coating lines and continuous annealing line, and the new state-of-the-art steelmaking facility with the capacity to produce 1.5 million metric tonnes of low CO2 steel, annually. The new steelmaking facility will be capable of supplying exposed automotive grades. Commissioning and first heat (an initial batch of molten steel marking the start of operations) were completed this month. In addition, a new seven-year domestic slab supply agreement with NSC has commenced, averaging 750,000 metric tonnes per year, ensuring a significant portion of the slab requirements are melted and poured in the United States. The feasibility of a steelmaking expansion at the site, which would further strengthen its U.S. domestic production capability, is being assessed. The new steelmaking facility, integrated with ArcelorMittal's HBI facility in Texas, will enable Calvert to supply automotive customers with lower CO2 embodied steel, melted and poured in the United States. In February 2025, the Company announced its intention to invest $1.2 billion to construct an advanced, non-grain-oriented electrical steel (NOES) manufacturing facility at the same site in Calvert, Alabama. The new facility will be capable of producing up to 150,000 metric tonnes of NOES annually, in support of automotive and mobility, renewable electricity production and other industrial and commercial markets. The project can strengthen U.S. manufacturing competitiveness and reduce U.S. dependency on electrical steel imports through the expansion of domestic NOES production. The project is advancing to schedule: all long lead equipment purchase order have been issued, and manufacturing has commenced for major process equipment; all construction permits related to Air and Water have been received; earthwork and piling are in progress and work on the main construction packages are underway. First NOES production is expected in 2027. Commenting, ArcelorMittal CEO, Aditya Mittal, said: 'ArcelorMittal has a long and proud history in the United States, a country which values the strategic importance of its steel industry. We are delighted to be further enhancing our presence in this important and attractive market with full ownership of Calvert. 'I remember clearly the first time I visited the facility, back in 2014. A state-of-the-art, high-quality finishing line, we knew immediately that this was an asset with great potential. Since that time, we have invested considerably and transformed the facility into a highly strategic steelmaking asset, capable of producing the highest quality, low-carbon-emissions steels, and with considerable further opportunity to grow. The construction of a new electrical steel facility is already underway, and we are also evaluating the potential of further enhancing steelmaking capacity. 'Most importantly, I want to thank all our great people at Calvert for their absolute commitment to ensuring that this facility is world class in every respect, and also highlight that we have an incredibly bright future ahead of us. We are already breaking new ground in terms of the types of steels being produced in an electric arc furnace, and we will ensure that Calvert stays at the cutting edge for the most sophisticated customer segments, such as electrical steels, while always prioritising world-class safety performance.' ArcelorMittal North America CEO, John Brett, added: 'Certainly, we know the Calvert asset extremely well and thus, consolidating it into the ArcelorMittal Group will naturally occur. We have a great team which is motivated by the opportunities to further expand and enhance the capabilities of the asset, thereby strengthening our position as a top producer of American steels for the most demanding applications. 'Our vision is to establish an ArcelorMittal manufacturing center of excellence in Calvert with safety always the first priority. We have already started the expansion of Calvert's world class assets with our new EAF which is supported by a resilient and sustainable domestic supply chain, including HBI from our plant in Texas. Additionally, our planned NOES facility will broaden our product portfolio, supplying the growing automotive mobility demands. 'The US is well positioned to have a strong and revitalized future and Calvert has a pivotal role to play in supporting that, addressing critical market needs with evolving societal transformations, and contributing to economic strength and skilled jobs in the region.' Financial implications of the transaction: In FY 2024, AM/NS Calvert generated EBITDA of $614 million (approximately 60% of this was reflected in ArcelorMittal Group EBITDA). Following the transaction, ArcelorMittal's net debt is expected to increase by approximately $1.3 billion. In accordance with the terms of the EPA, ArcelorMittal paid $1 consideration for the shares of NS Kote Inc., which holds 50% of the equity interest of AM/NS Calvert, in addition to cash and loans receivable of approximately $0.9 billion. As a result, following the transaction, the Company expects to record an exceptional gain of approximately $1.5 billion in its 2Q 2025 results (final amount being subject to completion of the purchase price allocation). Sustaining/normative capex requirements are expected to be approximately $90 million annually, with an additional $90 million capex anticipated in 2H 2025 related to the EAF project. Forward-Looking Statement This document contains forward-looking information and statements about ArcelorMittal and AM/NS Calvert. These statements include financial projections and estimates and their underlying assumptions, statements regarding plans, objectives and expectations with respect to future operations, products and services, and statements regarding future performance. Forward-looking statements may be identified by the words 'believe', 'expect', 'anticipate', 'target', "projected", "potential", "intend" or similar expressions. Although ArcelorMittal's management believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, investors and holders of ArcelorMittal's securities are cautioned that forward-looking information and statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and generally beyond the control of ArcelorMittal, that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially and adversely from those expressed in, or implied or projected by, the forward-looking information and statements. These risks and uncertainties include those discussed or identified in the filings with the Luxembourg Stock Market Authority for the Financial Markets (Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier) and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the 'SEC') made or to be made by ArcelorMittal, including ArcelorMittal's latest Annual Report on Form 20-F on file with the SEC. ArcelorMittal undertakes no obligation to publicly update its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or is one of the world's leading integrated steel and mining companies with a presence in 60 countries and primary steelmaking operations in 15 countries. It is the largest steel producer in Europe, among the largest in the Americas, and has a growing presence in Asia through its joint venture AM/NS India. ArcelorMittal sells its products to a diverse range of customers including the automotive, engineering, construction and machinery industries, and in 2024 generated revenues of $62.4 billion, produced 57.9 million metric tonnes of crude steel and 42.4 million tonnes of iron ore. Our purpose is to produce smarter steels for people and planet. Steels made using innovative processes which use less energy, emit significantly less carbon and reduce costs. Steels that are cleaner, stronger and reusable. Steels for the renewable energy infrastructure that will support societies as they transform through this century. With steel at our core, our inventive people and an entrepreneurial culture at heart, we will support the world in making that change. ArcelorMittal is listed on the stock exchanges of New York (MT), Amsterdam (MT), Paris (MT), Luxembourg (MT) and on the Spanish stock exchanges of Barcelona, Bilbao, Madrid and Valencia (MTS). Contacts: ArcelorMittal Investor Relations General +44 20 7543 1128Sustainability +44 203 214 2490 Bonds/Credit +33 157 955 035E-mail ArcelorMittal Corporate Communications Paul Weigh +44 20 3214 2419E-mail: press@ ArcelorMittal North America CommunicationsChris Mason +1 219 666 4636E-Mail: in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
New Straits Times
2 days ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
NSC expecting to send up to 700 athletes to Thailand Sea Games
KUALA LUMPUR: The National Sports Council is expecting to come up with a shortlist of athletes to be registered for the Thailand Sea Games by September. NSC director-general Jefri Ngadirin said preparations for the games are well underway for athletes under NSC's full-time programme. The biennial games will be held across Bangkok, Chonburi and Songkhla on Dec 9-20. "We recently had a Sea Games preparation coordination meeting together with the Olympic Council of Malaysia (OCM) and the National Sports Institute," said Jefri yesterday (June 17). "We presented our preparation programme for our athletes, involving 43 sports (under NSC), while NSI also presented the support services they intend to prepare for the games. "We are currently in the process of identifying athletes for the registration long list and hope to have a shortlist by September. "There will be 50 sports contested in Thailand and we will be competing in 48 of them. We expect to send between 600 to 700 athletes to the games. "We have also requested that OCM appoints a chef de mission and deputy chef de mission as well as team managers soon so we can coordinate our preparations at the national sports association level." By comparison, Malaysia sent 677 athletes to compete at the 2023 Phnom Penh Games, 584 at Hanoi 2021 (held in 2022 due to Covid-19) and 773 at Manila 2019. Jefri added that efforts have been made over the past two years to "transform" sports that had underperformed at previous editions of the Sea Games, such as swimming. "We have done a lot of transformation in swimming. This includes the appointment of a technical director as well as new foreign coaches for the senior and backup squads," said Jefri. Malaysian swimming has suffered slow but steady decline at the Sea Games level for over a decade now. The swimming squad has not been able to win more than one gold medal at the last two editions of the games.
AsiaOne
3 days ago
- Politics
- AsiaOne
Trump administration disbands group focused on pressuring Russia, sources say, World News
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration shelved in recent weeks an inter-agency working group it had set up to formulate strategies for pressuring Russia into speeding up peace talks with Ukraine, according to three US officials. The effort, which was established earlier in the spring, lost steam in May as it became increasingly clear to participants that US President Donald Trump was not interested in adopting a more confrontational stance toward Moscow, said the officials. Despite pledging during his campaign to end the war in Ukraine on the first day of his presidency, Trump in recent months has grown increasingly frustrated that his push has yielded no breakthroughs. He has begun saying that the United States may abandon its efforts to broker peace altogether. In light of that threat, the working group's task seemed increasingly irrelevant, added those officials, who requested anonymity to describe sensitive internal discussions. "It lost steam toward the end because the president wasn't there. Instead of doing more, maybe he wanted to do less," one of the officials said. The death of the working group, the existence of which has not been previously reported, is likely to deepen European allies' concerns over Trump's at-times conciliatory tone toward Russia and his reluctance to express full-throated support for Ukraine ahead of a pivotal summit of Nato allies later this month. On the first day of a meeting of Group of Seven leaders in Canada on Monday, the Republican president said removing Russia from the former Group of Eight over a decade ago had been a mistake. The final blow for the working group came roughly three weeks ago, when most members of the White House National Security Council — including the entire team dealing directly with the Ukraine war — were dismissed as part of a broad purge, according to the three officials. The effort was set up and coordinated by high-ranking NSC staffers, the officials said, though it included participants from the State Department, Treasury Department, the Pentagon and intelligence community. Among those working on the effort was Andrew Peek, the top NSC official for Europe and Russia, who was removed in May. It is unclear precisely who gave the order to discontinue the effort, but the officials suggested the depth of the NSC cuts made its continuation largely untenable. Since the effort's dissolution, Trump's broader peacemaking efforts, which had been a central element of his campaign pitch, have hit a challenging stretch. Despite some successes — such as a US-brokered ceasefire between India and Pakistan — Trump has made little tangible progress in achieving a ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of a full-blown regional war in the Middle East has risen rapidly with the Israel-Iran conflict. The dissolution of the group also follows a March suspension of work by some US national security agencies on a coordinated effort to counter Russian sabotage and disinformation operations, Reuters reported at the time. Nevertheless, Trump could choose to adopt a firmer stance toward Russia regardless of the fate of the working group, which was set up to develop options for the president "if he wanted to get tougher on Russia," one of the officials said. Some Trump allies, including Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, have publicly advocated for an expansive new round of sanctions directed at Russia, citing Moscow's effective rejection of US ceasefire proposals and the Kremlin's continual attacks on civilian targets as proof of Putin's recalcitrance. Trump has said he is considering such measures, but he has also regularly faulted both sides for the ongoing hostilities. The White House did not respond to a request for comment, nor did the Treasury Department, the State Department or the Pentagon. [[nid:719195]] The Ukrainian and Russian embassies in Washington also did not respond to requests for comment. 'Deep frustration' The working group was formed in March or April at a time when some close Trump advisers were growing increasingly sceptical of the Kremlin's willingness to reach a deal, while Trump's rhetoric suggested he might be interested in modifying his accommodating stance toward Putin. In an interview with NBC News in late March, he said he was "very angry" and "pissed off" at the Russian leader for raising questions about the legitimacy of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. NSC spokesman James Hewitt said in an April 1 statement to Reuters that there was a "deep frustration with the Russian government over negotiations." Among the topics discussed within the working group was how the US could incentivise or pressure former Soviet states, as well as other Eastern European and Asian nations, to limit the flow of goods and energy into and out of Russia, said the officials. It is unclear if Trump was aware of the working group's formation or subsequent dissolution. The NSC removals left few high-ranking people on the Russia file, complicating the prospects for any robust inter-agency debate on the topic. While reluctant to discuss the details of the options drawn up by the group due to the sensitive nature of the work, US officials said the group was still brainstorming ideas when it was dissolved. The group's work was unrelated to the Russia sanctions package in the US Senate. Ideas ranged from tailored economic deals designed to peel some countries out of Russia's geopolitical orbit to covert special operations efforts, the officials said. One official mentioned the possibility of creating an incentive structure to push Kazakhstan to more vigorously crack down on sanctions evasion. The country, like other post-Soviet states, has been used by traders to bypass some Western-imposed import restrictions on Russia since Moscow's expanded invasion began in 2022. The Kazakhstani embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment. [[nid:718992]]
