Germany's uranium imports from Russia surge by 70% despite energy sanctions

 Friday, January 3, 2025 

Germany imported at least 68.6 tons of uranium from Russia in 2024, according to data from the Lower Saxony Ministry of Environment, Energy, and Climate Protection, as reported by Spiegel. This marks a 70% increase in imports of this resource compared to 2023.

The uranium suppliers were two subsidiaries of the Russian state corporation Rosatom. The material, slated for use in nuclear power plants, was delivered to the Advanced Nuclear Fuels (ANF) plant in Lingen, which manufactures fuel assemblies. ANF is a subsidiary of Framatome, a French manufacturer of nuclear plant equipment. Notably, Germany has phased out nuclear energy.

Despite the EU sanctions against Moscow following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, uranium imports from Russia have not been affected. The EU "does not impose an embargo on the import or export of nuclear fuel for peaceful purposes," explained the federal ministry responsible for the environment, nature conservation, nuclear safety, and consumer protection, confirming the shipments.

ANF has submitted an application to the Lower Saxony authorities to operate a new production line. The plant aims to produce fuel assemblies for Russian-type water-water reactors (VVER), used in five EU countries. The new fuel assemblies are to be manufactured under a license from the Russian company TVEL, a Rosatom subsidiary. By late November 2024, Framatome had acknowledged the necessity of importing not only uranium but also other components required for producing fuel assemblies from Russia.

A decision on the application is still pending, and federal authorities have not specified a timeline for completing the mandatory review. In 2023, German authorities had warned that such cooperation might threaten the country's security, particularly in the event of "immediate disruptive intervention" at the facility.

In light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the EU has prioritized reducing energy dependency on Russia. Consequently, Framatome's plans have sparked outrage among environmentalists and civil rights activists.

Generation P

What we know about the Russians who came of age under Vladimir Putin

 January 3, 2025
Source: Signal

Toma Gerzha / Control Refresh

“Generation Putin” is the name sometimes given to people who have lived their entire lives under Vladimir Putin’s rule in Russia. In the past decade, these people have come of age, and now make up the cohort of young adults who will inherit whatever follows Putin in Russia. It’s never easy to characterize generational cohorts, and in the tumult of Putin’s escalating domestic repression and outright military aggression in Ukraine, it’s even more difficult to paint a clear picture of Generation Putin. Meduza explains what Russia’s young adults believe, and what they might do once Putin’s gone.

This essay is adapted from an issue of Signal, a Russian-language email newsletter from Meduza. If you enjoyed this piece, stay tuned. We’ve got a book coming in early 2025!

By the end of the 2010s in Russia, a generation of people were coming of age who had lived their entire lives under Vladimir Putin. They soon acquired a collective name: Generation Putin.

Some Russian scholars used to say that around half of Generation Putin believes in the possibility of positive Russian relations with the West and that their own futures will be happy. Many members of this cohort also hold democratic values and don’t trust the current regime.

But now, three years into Russia’s full-scale military invasion of Ukraine, Generation Putin has taken on a different meaning entirely. Russia’s youth are now said, in the global mainstream media, to resemble the majority of Russians: they’re politically apathetic, tacitly supporting the war. Sociological studies continue to refute this idea, calling Generation Putin a weak point in the Russian authorities’ various propaganda campaigns. But the notion that they’re apathetic has stuck.

In reality, the truth about Russia’s young adults is hard to discern.

The bitter truth is that events in Russia affect your life, too. Help Meduza continue to bring news from Russia to readers around the world by setting up a monthly donation.
Defining a generation

The phrase “Generation Putin” on its own barely has meaning, because it can mean practically anything. If you hear that Generation Putin is apolitical or politicized, conformist or rebellious, or anything else, it’s likely just content for clicks.

The generational breakdown that has become conventional (from boomers to zoomers) isn’t really scientific, it’s more like a marketing ploy.

It does rest on real scholarly work, though, most importantly on the theory of generations developed by sociologist Karl Mannheim in the early 20th century. Mannheim argued that people between the ages of 17 and 25 are particularly impressionable. When major historical events (war, revolution, or other tears in the fabric of life) happen, they have a particularly significant social impact on people in this age group. Thus, a generation is formed, for example the “Lost Generation” (who were young during World War I), the “Silent Generation” (who were young during World War II), and so on.

For Mannheim, this was simply an observation; he never claimed to have come up with a fully-fledged theory. However, his work formed the basis for a 1990s book by William Strauss and Neil Howe called, Generations: The History of America’s Future, 1584 to 2069.

Strauss and Howe’s work is the origin of the most popular organization scheme for American 20th century generations: Baby boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, etc. Most scholars consider this delineation of generations artificial and unproductive, because it assumes that large groups of people will share common traits simply because they are of a similar age. It takes social class, education, gender identity, and many other important factors out of the equation.

This generational breakdown did, however, turn out to be a very convenient way for companies to position brands and plan advertising campaigns.

In Russia in the early aughts, sociologist Yury Levada delineated six Soviet generations, also according to the historical setting of their “impressionable years.” His generations were defined by the revolution and Civil War; the Stalin era social mobilization; World War II; the Thaw; and the Era of Stagnation and Perestroika.

Putin and ‘Generation P’

The Kremlin wants Generation Putin’s loyalty.

Sociologist Iskender Yasaveyev told Signal that scholars approach studying Generation Putin with great caution. He points out that a united youth politics did not immediately emerge when Putin took power in Russia. Moreover, the concept of “youth,” including its legal definition, has changed several times under Putin. It originally signified people between 14 and 30 years old, then it was expanded to 35, and in the future the upper limit of “youth” may be raised to 38.

Since the mid-aughts, Russian authorities have been trying to control young Russians’ political activity. They have not been especially successful, however. The protests of the winter of 2011–2012 changed the country’s entire political situation dramatically. Since then, the authorities have markedly increased the amount of “patriotic programming” in educational curricula, and have also made more active attempts to influence young people on the Internet.

With Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the outbreak of war in Ukraine in 2014, these programs have taken on an increasingly militaristic character, Yasaveyev noted. The youth policy program for the years 2016–2020 saw the first instance of the phrase “in peacetime and in wartime,” for example.


Other scholars researching Russian youth have told Signal that it’s difficult to measure the influence of Russia’s new “patriotic education.” One Levada Center sociologist, who requested anonymity, says that opinion polls do not show that young Russians are supporters of the current government. “Surveys do not show people’s privately held opinions,” the researcher says, “but rather how prepared they are to share the opinions that dominate the public sphere.”

Support for Putin among Russia’s youth is a direct result of the war in Ukraine. Since 2022, it has become abundantly clear to everyone what can and cannot be said in public. Young people’s answers to opinion polls show not what they themselves really believe, but what they currently understand to be acceptable to believe and to say. External pressure on Russia also plays a role. “Many people who are growing up now have never been outside of Russia,” the Levada Center researcher said. “In addition, the war [against Ukraine] has seriously changed the Western world’s relationship to Russia, and the media and culture reflect this. It has an effect on the mood of the youth. The authorities’ ideological work only intensifies these processes.”

More on Russia’s patriotic curriculum


The Kremlin’s campaign to make education more ‘patriotic’ reaches English language classes with new ‘Glorious Russia’ textbook
3 months ago

Iskender Yasaveyev is certain that the main result of Russia’s current patriotic education and repressive political climate will be the formation of double consciousness, similar to the late Soviet era. “In that period, [the official] values being broadcast were assimilated at the level of rhetoric — but the backdrop was a widespread detachment from those values in everyday life. The problem with today’s patriotic education is that it is lackluster, if not entirely meaningless. Its essence is anti-Westernization, traditionalism, and loyalty to the authorities. But this is unlikely to seriously capture anyone.”


Will they miss Putin when he’s gone?

If we construct a generation the way Mannheim would, the first Putin generation would be comprised of people born right around 1980 — they were in their early 20s in the 2000s, when he first took power. Today’s 24-year-olds (who are currently in their “impressionable years”) haven’t lived under any authority but Putin’s. They’re the ones people most often call Generation Putin.

In 2021, scholar Grigory Yudin said that Generation Putin was actually made of people born around the turn of the millennium, who live in anticipation of “an event that will make them a generation.” That’s the same shock, the same tear in social fabric, that Mannheim wrote about.

This event occurred on February 24, 2022 — when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

A number of studies continue, to this day, to show that Russian youth are distrustful of and indifferent to politics. Researchers attribute this to the fact that this generation grew up during a general “cleansing” of the political field by Putin and his allies. It’s also true, though, that people this age willingly volunteer and donate money to charity.

In 2024, the Kremlin-connected Expert Institute for Social Research put out a monograph on Russian youth. It argues that young people have “vague and fragmented ideas about Russia.” Put simply, this generation’s values and views appear so complex and contradictory that, that it’s impossible to paint a portrait that fully characterizes the whole group.

Toma Gerzha / Control Refresh

There are, however, several features that do really characterize the Putin generation, the Levada Center researcher told Signal. Young Russians are the country’s most culturally westernized group. This is primarily true because they consume the most foreign popular culture — even aggressively anti-Western domestic politics and state propaganda have been unable to slow that trend.

Russian youth also remain the country’s most tolerant demographic, despite bans on “gay propaganda” and the Russian authorities’ move to label all LGBTQ-focused groups as “extremist organizations.” They’re also progressive despite the state’s efforts — for example, though domestic policy in Russian currently aims at increasing the birth rate and upholding “traditional values,” the age at which Russians first marry continues to increase.

Generation Putin is also still young, and just beginning to come into its own. It’s impossible to predict what will ultimately happen to the young people who stayed in Russia, but many still try. The usual method is by drawing historical parallels to the people who came of age in Spain under Francisco Franco.

The Franco generation grew up in the political and economic turmoil of the 1930s, which would devolve into the Spanish Civil War. Its members were indoctrinated with a nationalist and Catholic ideology during the rise of Franco’s regime. The civil war polarized society in a way that left a permanent division within this generation. Some of its members ended up with official positions in Franco’s government, while others organized underground movements against his dictatorship.


Franco’s reign ended when he died, and the generation whose lives had been lived entirely under his rule were the ones who ushered their country into a new democratic age. Spain largely avoided mass nostalgia for the Franco regime by conducting wide-scale social research into that era’s repressions. It’s a curious but readily observed fact that nostalgia for Franco’s dictatorship is more likely among generations of people who didn’t actually live through it.

It’s possible that some future generations will miss Putin, but it’s likely that they haven’t been born yet.


Mikita Kuchinski for Signal

Nippon Steel to sue US govt as Biden blocks $14.9B acquisition deal

President Biden blocked the $14.9 billion sale of US Steel to Nippon Steel, citing the need to protect domestic industry, after a panel failed to reach a decision on whether the deal threatened US national security.



Biden's decision, less than three weeks before he leaves office, follows extended wrangling over competing domestic political, economic and trade demands. 

/ Photo: AP Archive

Nippon Steel has decided to file a lawsuit against the US government to challenge the appropriateness of the procedures by which President Joe Biden issued an order to block its acquisition of US Steel, the Nikkei Business reported.

US Steel and Nippon Steel said on Friday they would take all "appropriate action to protect their legal rights" after Biden's move.

Both firms called the decision "a clear violation of due process and the law."

"The President's statement and order do not present any credible evidence of a national security issue, making clear that this was a political decision," the companies said in a joint statement.

Biden blocked the $14.9 billion sale, citing a strategic need to protect domestic industry.

The move came after a government panel failed to reach consensus last month on whether the acquisition threatened US national security, shifting the decision to the Democrat in the waning days of his presidency.

"This acquisition would place one of America's largest steel producers under foreign control and create risk for our national security and our critical supply chains," Biden said in a statement.

"That is why I am taking action to block this deal."

'Bold action'

The United Steelworkers union quickly welcomed the announcement.

"We're grateful for President Biden's willingness to take bold action to maintain a strong domestic steel industry and for his lifelong commitment to American workers," USW International President David McCall said.

US Steel's shares slumped more than five percent in early trading.

Biden's decision, less than three weeks before he leaves office, follows extended wrangling over competing domestic political, economic and trade demands.

The veteran Democrat, who made the rebuilding of the US manufacturing base a major goal of his administration, had criticised the deal for months, while holding off on a move that could risk damaging relations with Tokyo.

There was rare bipartisan agreement on the issue, with Republican president-elect Donald Trump and incoming vice president JD Vance also campaigning against the sale.

Nippon Steel had touted the takeover as a lifeline for a US company that is long past its heyday, but opponents warned that the Japanese owners would slash jobs.

Biden to block Nippon Steel’s takeover of US Steel, reports say

US president expected to announce decision to block proposed sale of Pittsburgh-based steelmaker as early as Friday.

A United Steelworkers sign is seen outside the Great Lakes Works United States Steel plant in River Rouge, Michigan, the United States, on September 16, 2024 [Rebecca Cook/Reuters]

Published On 3 Jan 2025

United States President Joe Biden has decided to block the proposed takeover of US Steel by Japan’s Nippon Steel, US media has reported.

Biden is expected to announce his decision to scuttle the $14.9bn sale on national security grounds as early as Friday, The New York Times, The Washington Post and Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

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Biden’s decision comes after the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States last month failed to reach a consensus on the possible national security risks of the deal, and just weeks before he hands control of the White House to US President-elect Donald Trump.

Biden had been widely expected to block the sale of the Pittsburgh-based steelmaker to Japan’s largest steel producer after opposing the proposal during his ill-fated re-election campaign.

Trump, who takes office on January 20, also opposed the deal, describing the proposed sale as “a horrible thing”.

The proposed sale was seen as an important election issue in the key swing state of Pennsylvania, which flipped from Trump to Biden in 2020 and back to Trump in November.

The United Steelworkers labour union (USW) lobbied strongly against the sale, describing it as “nothing more than corporate greed, selling out American workers and jeopardising the long-term future of the domestic steel industry and our national security”.

Under the proposed sale, which was overwhelmingly backed by shareholders of US Steel, the combined company would have become one of the world’s largest steel producers.

US Steel would have become a subsidiary of Nippon Steel but kept its name and its headquarters in Pittsburgh.

Biden’s decision could strain relations with Japan, one of the closest US allies in Asia and a key partner in Washington’s efforts to counter China.

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in November wrote to Biden asking him to approve the deal to avoid damage to ties between the sides, the Reuters news agency reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies

Beijing slams US over potential Chinese drone ban

The decision on banning commercial Chinese drones will fall to the incoming administration of US President-elect Donald Trump

.PHOTO: REUTERS

UPDATED Jan 03, 2025

BEIJING – China said on Jan 3 it would take “all necessary measures” in response to the United States announcing it was considering restrictions on commercial Chinese drones for national security reasons.

On Jan 2, the US Commerce Department said it was considering new rules to address risks posed by drones made with technology from foreign adversaries such as China and Russia.

The efforts could lead to regulations or bans on Chinese drones, which dominate the global market.

Responding to a question about the potential restrictions on Jan 3, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning accused the US of “generalising the concept of national security, interfering (with) and restricting normal economic and trade exchanges, and undermining the security and stability of global production and supply chains”.

“We will take all necessary measures to firmly safeguard our legitimate rights and interests,” she added.

The US Commerce Department is seeking public feedback on the potential new rules until March 4, meaning the decision will fall to the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump.

The department suggested the technology designed by China may give it “the ability to remotely access and manipulate” the drones, which could “present undue or unacceptable risks to US national security”.
 Media's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy as amended from time to time.

In October 2024, Chinese drone maker DJI, the world’s largest drone manufacturer, said it was suing the US Department of Defence after Washington designated it a “Chinese military company” in 2022.

“DJI is not owned or controlled by the Chinese military... (It) is a private company and should not be misclassified as a military company,” the firm said at the time.

DJI has attracted Washington’s scrutiny in recent years, including for its alleged role in surveilling ethnic minorities in China.

In September, Washington moved to ban the sale of connected vehicles incorporating Chinese and Russian technology, citing national security risks. AFP

CRIMINAL CAPITALI$M

The independent public prosecution office of the EU

Italy: EPPO charges nine suspects and five companies with fraud to obtain €4 million for aquaculture

Published on 3 January 2025



(Luxembourg, 3 January 2025) – The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Rome (Italy) has charged nine individuals and five companies with aggravated fraud to obtain €4 million for the aquaculture sector, funded by the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF).

At issue are five cooperative societies, suspected of submitting false documentation and fictitious insurance policies, in order to obtain €4 million for the construction of new fish tanks and a fish boat for the aquaculture sector. During the application procedure, one of the companies was barred from receiving any funds, after it was sanctioned with an anti-mafia preventive measure.

Four companies received an advance payment of €1.4 million from the EMFF. The beneficiaries informed the paying agency that the works on the new tanks had started, but later checks showed that this was not true.

An additional request for €2.6 million was submitted to the paying agency, but the funds were not disbursed, thanks to the timely investigation of the EPPO.

The evidence gathered points to criminal responsibility of the suspects for aggravated fraud to obtain public funds, as well as embezzlement and money laundering.

Overall, four of the five companies were affected by an anti-mafia preventive measure: one during the application procedure, for another investigation, and the remaining after this investigation started.

The investigation counted on the support of the Italian Financial Police (Guardia di Finanza – Comando Provinciale Foggia) and with the cooperation of the local Port Authority.

All persons concerned are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in the competent Italian courts of law.

The EPPO is the independent public prosecution office of the European Union. It is responsible for investigating, prosecuting and bringing to judgment crimes against the financial interests of the EU.

More than a tourist attraction: Tokyo Skytree jolts research as a lightning rod

The Tokyo Skytree’s height of 634m makes it a literal lightning rod, with at least 10 strikes a year.

PHOTO: TOKYO SKYTREE

Walter Sim
 Jan 03, 2025
THE STRAITS TIMES

TOKYO – The Tokyo Skytree, the world’s tallest freestanding tower, is more than just one of the city’s top tourist attractions: It is also a science laboratory for lightning and other research, and a disaster mitigation hub.

The 634m-tall structure – more than twice the height of Singapore’s tallest building, the 290m-high Guoco Tower – towers over the bustling Japanese capital and has welcomed more than 50 million visitors since it opened in May 2012.

The main role of the Tokyo Skytree is to transmit digital terrestrial broadcasting for the Greater Tokyo region. Since 2012, it has taken over the transmission role from the 333m-tall Tokyo Tower, which was completed in 1958 and was increasingly unable to provide complete coverage as it came to be surrounded by high-rise buildings.

The Tokyo Skytree’s height makes it a literal lightning rod, with at least 10 strikes a year – not a surprise considering the relatively flat terrain around it – effectively debunking the old saying that lightning never strikes the same place twice.

This makes the structure ripe for lightning research, and the world’s scientists are taking notice – no other lightning measuring devices are installed on buildings at such heights anywhere else in the world

.
A view of Tokyo, as taken from an outdoor platform 497m above ground at the Tokyo Skytree.

ST PHOTO: WALTER SIM

The Straits Times was among a few media outlets to recently get a look at the lightning research apparatus located outdoors at 497m above ground. This is higher than the 450m-high observation deck accessible to the public.


Getting there required donning a helmet and a safety vest, before taking the service lift and navigating a labyrinth of steep staircases and ladders while facing strong winds. Reporters had to secure their belongings, including smartphones, pens and notebooks, to their bodies with string so that nothing fell through the steel gratings or was blown off.


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While it has been more than 270 years since Benjamin Franklin, one of the US’ founding fathers, realised that lightning was a form of electricity, mysteries still persist over the natural phenomenon today.

Many contemporary lightning countermeasures being taken worldwide are based on data derived more than 50 years ago from measurements taken on a Swiss mountain.


This presents a knowledge gap that the Tokyo Skytree aims to bridge by offering an urban counterpoint, especially during severely humid Japanese summers, as climate change brings on more instances of what Japan calls “guerilla rainstorms” – short, localised deluges with more than 100mm of rain per hour.

“Many aspects of lightning are still unknown today, given how difficult it is to measure and study,” said senior researcher Mikihisa Saito of the Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry (CRIEPI).

Other than lightning studies, the Tokyo Skytree also serves as a research laboratory for the heat island effect (where urban areas are warmer due to the absorption of heat by pavements, buildings or other surfaces), airborne PM2.5 particles and levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

For the lightning research, the structure’s operator, affiliated with railway giant Tobu, gave CRIEPI permission to install what are known as “Rogowski coils” to monitor strikes round the clock.

Senior researcher Mikihisa Saito of the Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry showing the lightning measurement apparatus on an outdoor platform located 497m above ground at the Tokyo Skytree. 

ST PHOTO: WALTER SIM

Data – including the current and direction of the lightning strike – is fed to an indoor observation room located 300m above ground, and stored in a recording device.

Mr Saito’s team gets smartphone alerts every time the Tokyo Skytree is struck. While the observation is fully automated, his team manually collects data and inspects the coil for any damage.

Numerous studies have been published in scientific journals through the years, but Mr Saito said the data collected so far is not enough: “We obviously want to gather more data, but this is difficult since it depends on natural conditions.”

His team hopes to study different types of lightning, what kinds of conditions lead to them being induced and the amount of current produced, whether it is possible to create devices that can accurately pinpoint the location of lightning strikes, and if there are efficient ways of preventing lightning damage.

He hopes the work can benefit weather scientists and agencies, as well as utilities companies that oversee the maintenance of power cables and protection of high-rise buildings from lightning damage.

This is becoming increasingly urgent as Tokyo faces a surge in lightning strikes, which have been hypothesised to be due to more violent storms triggered by climate change. Tokyo registered 60,741 lightning strikes from July to September 2024, which was 3.9 times that of the same period in 2023.

Additionally, Japan is naturally prone to disasters such as earthquakes and typhoons, which makes it necessary for the Tokyo Skytree to continue its role as a broadcasting tower even during crises.

Structural engineer Atsuo Konishi from engineering firm Nikken Sekkei, who was involved in the construction of the 36,000-tonne tower, said two key features make the tower resilient to disasters.

The first is a central pillar, which is a reinforced concrete core column built in the centre of the Tokyo Skytree. This is separate from another steel-framed tower, which allows both components to vibrate at different frequencies, thus reducing vibrations by up to 50 per cent during earthquakes

.
The Tokyo Skytree, which towers 634m above ground, is the tallest freestanding tower in the world.

ST PHOTO: WALTER SIM

The structure was inspired by five-storey pagodas such as the Horyuji Temple in Nara prefecture, which, at more than 1,600 years old, is among the oldest surviving wooden structures in the world. There are no records in Japan of such pagodas ever collapsing in a quake, and this is thought to be due to the existence of a central pillar.

The second feature is the truss structure, which is formed by interconnecting triangles made with high-strength steel pipes. This allows the tower to withstand maximum instantaneous wind speeds of up to 110m per second.

“The tower has been built to withstand the strongest envisioned earthquake that may hit Tokyo, based on government research of all the fault lines and activity beneath the city,” Mr Konishi said, while wind velocity of such strengths is regarded as an at least once-in-2,000-year event

.
One of two disaster monitoring cameras installed by the Sumida Ward Office at 260m above ground at the Tokyo Skytree.

ST PHOTO: WALTER SIM

The Tokyo Skytree’s durability during disasters is why the local Sumida ward is using it as a backup disaster response headquarters if the ward office cannot be used. There are emergency rations as well as equipment such as monitors and microphones that can broadcast announcements to public speakers throughout the ward.

The ward office has also installed two disaster monitoring cameras at 260m above ground, with zoom functions of up to 100 times, providing a 360-degree bird’s eye view of the area for the monitoring of threats, from fires to flooding.

That the Tokyo Skytree was built to its full height of 634m just seven days after the Great East Japan Earthquake of March 11, 2011, was symbolic of Japan’s recovery and resilience, said Mr Kenichiro Iwamoto, a disaster prevention manager at Sumida Ward Office.

“Even 300 years ago, when Tokyo was called Edo, it was one of the largest cities in the world with more than one million people,” he said.

“Much like the fire watchtowers of the era that helped prevent fires from engulfing wooden homes of the time, the Tokyo Skytree plays a similar disaster prevention role today.”Walter Sim is Japan correspondent at The Straits Times. Based in Tokyo, he writes about political, economic and socio-cultural issues.

Hanoi declared world’s most polluted city as authorities seek action

The thick smog in Hanoi is mostly caused by heavy traffic, trash burning and industrial activities.

PHOTO: REUTERS

UPDATED Jan 03, 2025, 

HANOI – Vietnam’s capital Hanoi has been covered in thick smog over recent weeks, putting it at the top of a list of the world’s most polluted cities, as the government said it would push for more electric vehicles (EVs) to alleviate the problem.

Levels of hazardous small particles, known as PM2.5, were measured at 266 micrograms per cubic m in Hanoi early on Dec 3, the highest reading among a list of most-polluted cities, according to AirVisual, which provides independent global air pollution information via a phone app.

The South-east Asian country, a regional manufacturing hub with one of the fastest-growing economies in Asia, has reported severe air pollution in its major cities for years, particularly in Hanoi.

The thick smog is mostly caused by heavy traffic, trash burning and industrial activities. “We the elderly can feel it very clearly when we suffer from respiratory problems that lead to breathing difficulties,” 64-year-old Luu Minh Duc, a resident of the city, said. “The situation seems to get worse recently.”

Young people are also complaining.

“At first I thought it was foggy... but later I found out that it is actually fine dust that reduces my vision and makes me feel like it is not healthy to breathe,” said 21-year-old student Nguyen Ninh Huong.

Speaking at a meeting with the Transport Ministry on Dec 2, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha called for an accelerated transition to electric vehicles (EVs) as part of the efforts to reduce pollution, state media reported.

So far, Hanoi has a target for at least 50 per cent of buses and 100 per cent of taxis to be EVs by 2030.

“This is the responsibility of the state to the people, and there must be specific and timely actions,” Mr Ha was quoted as saying by the Tien Phong newspaper.

The ministries of natural resources, environment and health did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment. 

REUTERS

Vietnam's capital blanketed by toxic smog

Published: 03 Jan 2025 - 

Motorists wearing face masks ride scooters along Long Bien Bridge amid heavy air pollution in Hanoi on January 3, 2025. Photo by Nhac NGUYEN / AFP

AFP

Hanoi: Thick smog blanketed Hanoi on Friday, obscuring buildings and leaving nine million residents choking on toxic air as the Vietnamese capital topped a list of the world's most polluted major cities.

Authorities urged people to wear masks and limit time outdoors, but commuters told AFP they were struggling to breathe through the putrid smog, now a fixture of the winter months in the city.

According to IQAir, levels of PM2.5 pollutants -- cancer-causing microparticles small enough to enter the bloodstream through the lungs -- hit 227 micrograms per cubic metre, 15 times the World Health Organization's recommended maximum daily average exposure.


Residential buildings are shrouded behind heavy air pollution in Hanoi on January 3, 2025. Photo by Nhac NGUYEN / AFP

Hanoi topped the Swiss monitoring company's ranking of the world's most polluted major cities during the morning, before falling back down.

The city was rated among the world's top 10 polluted capitals by IQAir in 2023.

Office worker Tran Quynh Lan told AFP that her struggle to breathe through noxious haze while commuting on a motorbike had forced her to switch to buses and taxis, despite the increased cost.


Workers sit in a boat on West Lake amid heavy air pollution conditions in Hanoi on January 3, 2025. Photo by Nhac NGUYEN / AFP

"The air quality has been so extremely bad that I really don't feel I can breathe easily in the open air. I have to wear masks all the time," she said.

The WHO says that a number of serious health conditions are linked to air pollution exposure, including strokes, heart disease and lung cancer.

Experts say pollution in Hanoi is a result of widespread construction, as well as emissions from the huge number of motorbikes and cars that crisscross the capital every day.

Carbon emissions from coal plants to the north and agricultural burning exacerbate the problem.


A motorist wearing a face mask rides a scooter on Long Bien Bridge amid heavy air pollution conditions in Hanoi on January 3, 2025. Photo by Nhac NGUYEN / AFP

"The source of pollution emissions changes little every day," said climate expert Huy Nguyen.

Due to current unfavourable weather conditions, "pollutants seem to be locked in a giant atmospheric glass cage that they cannot escape and they accumulate day after day", Huy told AFP.

He said Hanoi residents need to "wait for a strong northeast monsoon with rain and strong convection" for the pollution situation to improve.

Rain does not typically arrive in the city until March.

 South Africa

Macua takes fight to rescue trapped illegal miners to ConCourt

03 January 2025 - 11:34

Shonisani Tshikalange  

Reporter 

A mineshaft in Stilfontein where hundreds of illegal miners are believed to be hiding underground after police cut off their food and water supplies. File photo.
Image: Reuters/Ihsaan Haffejee

Mining Affected Communities United in Action (Macua) has intensified efforts to save illegal miners trapped in an abandoned gold mine in Stilfontein after an unsuccessful legal bid at the Pretoria high court.

This is after a recent ruling by the court dismissed the group’s earlier bid to force the government to rescue and provide relief to the remaining miners at Stilfontein.

The organisation has turned to the Constitutional Court, seeking urgent intervention in the crisis. The application also calls for immediate humanitarian aid during rescue efforts and seeks to compel the government to expedite operations to bring the trapped miners to the surface.

“To provide the artisanal miners at shaft 11 of the Buffelsfontein gold mine with humanitarian aid, including sufficient food, water and medication, pending the finalisation of rescue services and continue to allow the community to assist with the provision of food, water and medication.”

Macua also wants police minister Senzo Mchunu to allow Lawyers for Human Rights access to any miner arrested or detained after surfacing from shafts 10 and 11 at the mine.

So far, more than 1,500 illegal miners have resurfaced in Stilfontein. Several have been helped by local community members using a rope, while the police's Operation Vala Umgodi, or “close the hole”, which is aimed at combating illegal mining, continues.

Stilfontein illegal miners resorting to cannibalism to survive: Macua

Illegal miners at the Buffelsfontein mine in Stilfontein, North West, are resorting to cannibalism to survive, according to a submission to the ...

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4 days ago

According to a founding affidavit by Sabelo Mnguni, national administrator for Macua, at the centre of this case are the lives of hundreds to thousands of artisanal miners who have since about August 2024 been trapped underground under gruesome, undignified and life-threatening conditions.

Mnguni said the last communication received on December 24 2024 from one of the miners described the dire circumstances and claimed miners had resorted to eating human flesh.

He said the community and Macua have run out of the financial means to continue supplying humanitarian aid and to rescue the miners.

“With the financial means running out, it means the miners underground will return to the state they were in before the court order of [judge] Janse van Niewenhuizen was obtained, with no access to humanitarian aid, being food, water and medication, and no retrievals to the surface will take place.”

Mnguni said there was enough evidence before the high court showing the actions and inactions of the government in implementing Operation Vala Umgodi violated the constitutional rights of the miners.

He said the high court's judgment was procedurally and substantively flawed and Macua seeks urgent intervention to correct the “grave injustices”.

Mnguni said to date R118,973 has been raised on the crowdfunding website Back-A-Buddy to assist the miners. After the platform's 5% fee was deducted, the amount for disbursement stood at R113,024.

He confirmed the entire amount had already been disbursed. The contributions varied widely, with the largest single donation being R10,000 and the smallest R20. The average donation ranged between R100 and R500.

Fierce battles rage in northern Syria as Turkish-backed factions clash with SDF

2025-01-03 

Shafaq News/ Clashes continue in Northern Syria between Turkish-backed armed factions and the predominantly Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Turkish-allied "Syrian National Army" claimed to have gained new territory around the Tishrin Dam, while the SDF reported killing dozens of militants in the confrontations.

The Syrian National Army stated that it had captured the village of Sa’ideen and the Seriatel Hill near the Tishrin Dam on Friday. It also mentioned the deployment of significant military reinforcements to the frontlines south of Manbij.

On Thursday, SDF stated that they had "killed dozens of Turkish-backed militants and destroyed six of their military vehicles in the clashes. The attacks by Turkish-backed factions targeted several villages southeast of Manbij, as well as areas around the Tishrin Dam," adding that the attacks were supported by five Turkish drones, tanks, and modern armored vehicles.

According to media reports, "On Thursday, Turkish forces and their allied factions shelled the villages of Khidr Hassan and Sheikh Ali near Tal Tamr, and the village of Mushayrifa on the outskirts of Abu Rasin, near the Syrian-Turkish border."

Furthermore, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that "23 members of the Turkish-backed factions were killed, and around 18 others were injured in the fierce clashes with the SDF in northeastern Aleppo countryside on Thursday."

The Observatory also reported the death of four SDF fighters in the clashes around the town of Qabab Abu Qalqal, south of Manbij.

The SDF continues to control vast areas of northeastern Syria and parts of Deir ez-Zor province, particularly the eastern bank of the Euphrates River.

These areas have been under the self-administration established by the Kurds at the beginning of the conflict in Syria in 2011, following the withdrawal of government forces from a large portion of the territory.

Between 2016 and 2019, Turkiye conducted three military operations in northern Syria against the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), the backbone of the SDF, successfully gaining control over two extensive border regions inside Syria.

Moreover, the new Syrian administration leader, Ahmad Al-Shara, met with a delegation from the SDF on Monday for what was described as "positive" talks in their first meeting, as per media reports.

Syrian women protest Israeli occupation in Quneitra village

Residents of occupied area vow resistance, saying women, girls, children will stand together

Omer Koparan and Muhammet Nazim Tasci |03.01.2025 - TRT/AA



QUNEITRA, Syria

Women from Swaysa village and surrounding areas in Syria’s Quneitra province, which is under Israeli military occupation, are calling for an end to the Israeli aggression and the withdrawal of its forces from Syrian land.

In an interview with Anadolu, Resmiye al-Muhammed, a local resident, emphasized: “We do not want the Zionist occupation. This is our land, and we will not surrender it. Women, girls, and children will resist together.”

Quneitra, located in southwestern Syria, shares a border with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

Since the fall of Assad’s regime on Dec. 8, the Israeli military has escalated its attacks on Syrian territory, targeting military infrastructure while extending its control over the Golan Heights.

The Israeli forces have also intensified airstrikes and expanded their presence in Quneitra, with recent raids driving civilians from public buildings and resulting in three injuries during protests in Swaysa village.

‘Stop Israel from advancing further’

Betul Keryan, a resident of Swaysa, described the community’s resistance against the Israeli forces, saying: "Everyone came out to resist, and eventually, the Israeli forces withdrew."

Keryan, who called for the full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Quneitra, appealed to authorities and Arab nations for their support, stating: “We urge the authorities and Arab nations to support us.”

Selam Keryan, also from Swaysa, shared the fear her family experienced during the Israeli incursions. “My children were terrified by the sound of tanks. I did my best to comfort them,” she told Anadolu.

Keryan firmly stated her family’s rejection of Israel’s occupation, saying: “I call on the new Syrian administration to intervene and stop Israel from advancing further.”

She also recalled the hope she felt when Assad’s regime collapsed, saying: “We thought we could finally begin a new chapter of peace and security. But the Israeli army came and ruined everything.”

Assad, who ruled Syria for nearly 25 years, fled to Russia after anti-regime forces took control of Damascus on Dec. 8, bringing an end to the Baath Party’s reign, which had lasted since 1963.

The takeover occurred after Hayat Tahrir al-Sham fighters captured key cities in a swift offensive lasting less than two weeks. A new administration, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, has now assumed control.

Following the regime’s fall, Tel Aviv took control of the demilitarized zone in Syria's Quneitra province and declared the collapse of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement.


* Writing by Beril Canakci