Pentagon pressing Congress to restart programs monitoring Russia movements in Ukraine

 The Pentagon wants Congress to restart funding on two top-secret programs meant to allow U.S. special operations forces to employ Ukrainian operatives to watch Russian military movements and counter disinformation in the war-torn country, according to a report.

The programs, suspended last year ahead of Russia’s attack on Ukraine, could resume as early as 2024 if the Pentagon gets its way, current and former U.S. officials told the Washington Post.

Defense officials are readying a proposal for lawmakers to consider as they begin work on next year’s Defense Department funding and authorization bill in the next few months, according to the Post.

The Pentagon did not respond to request for comment from The Hill.  

Beyond a small number of American military personnel assigned to the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, none have publicly operated in Ukraine since Russia first attacked the country on Feb. 24.

Before that, the special operations forces ran two irregular warfare surrogate programs in the country — one that dismantled Russian propaganda and one that sent Ukrainian operatives on reconnaissance missions in Ukraine’s east to collect Russian signals intelligence, government officials told the Post.  

It is unclear whether U.S. commandos would quietly go back into Ukraine if the two secret programs are reupped, or if American forces would instead work from a nearby country.

President Biden has made clear repeatedly that he would not deploy any U.S. troops inside Ukraine except in isolated cases, such as at the embassy. 

The pair of programs were last funded at $15 million annually for all such activities worldwide — relatively cheap when compared to the billions of dollars in weapons the U.S. has pledged to Kyiv in the past year.  

But critics worry that should such activities resume, they risk drawing Russia’s ire as Moscow might view the United States as taking a more direct role in the conflict, the Post reported.  

Defense officials insist, however, the Ukrainian operatives and their U.S. handlers would be limited to noncombat operations. 

https://thehill.com/policy/international/3853385-pentagon-pressing-congress-to-restart-programs-monitoring-russian-movements-in-ukraine-report/

Pediatric flu deaths exceed 100 for first time since pandemic start

 The number of pediatric flu deaths during the current season has officially gone over 100, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — more than twice the number of the pediatric deaths confirmed in the last flu season.

The CDC reported nine pediatric flu deaths this week, bringing the total for the season up to 106. The agency also noted that it is the highest pediatric death rate for flu since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Most of these children were not vaccinated. This tragic milestone underscores the importance of vaccinating children against flu,” the CDC said in a statement.

“Flu vaccination uptake in children is lower by about 6 percentage points than it was prior to the COVID-19 pandemic,” the statement added, noting that 103 of the children were eligible for vaccination.

Among the children who died, 40 had preexisting medical conditions.

The two flu seasons preceding the 2022-2023 season were markedly mild due to coronavirus mitigation methods, such as masking and quarantining, that also limited the spread of influenza. In the 2020-2021 flu season, only one pediatric death was recorded and only 45 were reported the following season.

Prior to the start of the pandemic, 199 pediatric flu deaths were reported during the 2019-2020 flu season.

The current flu season was marked by an earlier than usual onset, coupled with the spread of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) among young children who had not been previously exposed to the common virus due to isolation brought on by the pandemic.Health officials were concerned that the U.S. could see a concurrent rise in RSV, flu and COVID-19 cases with the winter, but coronavirus cases remained relatively low peaking around late December.

The most recent flu report from the CDC found that seasonal flu activity is relatively low nationally, with only New Mexico and New York City considered to have “high” levels at this point.

https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/3852951-pediatric-flu-deaths-exceed-100-for-first-time-since-the-pandemic-started/

Ocular Therapeutix: Interim Data from Phase 1 in Wet AMD

 All OTX-TKI treated subjects who were rescue-free at the Month 7 interim analysis remained rescue-free, extending the 73% rescue-free rate up to Month 10

CSFT and BCVA measurements at 10 months were comparable between OTX-TKI treated subjects and aflibercept treated subjects

OTX-TKI continued to be generally well tolerated with no drug-related serious adverse events through Month 10

https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/OCULAR-THERAPEUTIX-INC-16917490/news/Ocular-Therapeutix-trade-Announces-Interim-10-month-Data-from-the-Ongoing-U-S-Phase-1-Clinical-Tri-42960967/

Moody's downgrades Ukraine rating on prolonged effects of Russia war

 

Global ratings agency Moody's downgraded Ukraine's sovereign rating to 'Ca' from 'Caa3' on Friday, as it expects the war with Russia to create long-lasting challenges for the country.

The Moody's downgrade comes amid a new Russian offensive ahead of the first anniversary of the war that started on Feb. 24, with Russia hitting Ukraine's power grid and gaining ground in the east.

The agency said challenges arising out of the ongoing war increase the risk to the country's debt sustainability.

"Despite large financial support from international partners, Moody's expects that the war will continue to keep Ukraine's public finances and external position under severe pressure," the ratings agency said.

Staff from the International Monetary Fund will meet with Ukrainian officials in Warsaw next week, a source familiar with the plans told Reuters on Friday, as Ukraine presses for a multi-billion dollar borrowing program to cover its funding needs given Russia's war.

According to Moody's, obligations rated 'Ca' are "highly speculative and are likely in, or very near, default, with some prospect of recovery of principal and interest".

Ratings agencies Fitch and S&P currently rate Ukraine at 'CC' and 'CCC+', respectively.

Moody's also changed Ukraine's outlook to stable from negative.

The agency's report also says Ukraine's gross domestic product contracted by around 30% in 2022, with large costs in terms of human losses and extensive damage to the country's economy and public finances.

https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/currency/US-DOLLAR-RUSSIAN-ROUBL-2370597/news/Moody-s-downgrades-Ukraine-rating-on-prolonged-effects-of-Russia-war-42958567/

ECB must avoid unnecessary rise in real interest rates - Visco

 

The European Central Bank (ECB) must avoid pushing real interest rates too high, given the level of private and public debt in the euro area, a top Italian policymaker said on Saturday.

ECB Governing Council member Ignazio Visco, who is also the Bank of Italy's governor, also said he did not believe a recession was inevitable in order to reduce inflation.

The ECB has raised interest rates by 3 percentage points since July and promised a 50 basis-point hike for March.

"Today, disinflation is obviously needed, but given the levels of private and public debts that prevail in the euro area, we must be careful to avoid engineering an unnecessary and excessive rise in real interest rates," Visco told the Warwick Economics Summit.

"Indeed, I am convinced that the credibility of our actions is preserved not by flexing our muscles in the face of inflation, but by continually showing wisdom and balance."

https://www.marketscreener.com/news/latest/ECB-must-avoid-unnecessary-rise-in-real-interest-rates-Visco--42959303/

West coast pipeline leak near LA halts gasoline deliveries in several states

 Gasoline deliveries on the West coast have been shutdown by a leak at a pipeline facility in California.The shutdown is affecting deliveries of gasoline and diesel from the Los Angeles area east to areas including Las Vegas and Phoenix.

Pipeline operator Kinder Morgan told The Associated Press the leak was discovered Thursday afternoon at a company station near Los Angeles and that its pipelines were shut down while the crews worked to resolve the issue.

"There are no injuries or fire reported as a result of this incident," said a company statement.

It is not known how much fuel leaked or when service would be restored.

"The appropriate regulatory agencies have been notified, and an investigation into the cause and quantity of the release will be conducted," the statement said. "We are working closely with our customers on potential impacts."

Officials believe supplies would not immediately be affected.

In Las Vegas, officials are "monitoring the situation, believe we have adequate supply, and do not anticipate an immediate impact on gas availability," according to a statement from Clark County.

The county said the pipeline provides fuel storage facilities in Southern Nevada with unleaded and diesel fuel.

Kinder Morgan says only one of the two pipelines that serves Las Vegas was shutdown.

Airports it serves include Nellis Air Force Base and Harry Reid International in Las Vegas and Edwards Air Force Base in California's Mojave Desert, the company said.

Ticker	Security	Last	Change	Change %
KMI	KINDER MORGAN INC.	18.36	+0.36	+2.00%
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Kinder Morgan's SFPP West pipeline runs approximately 515 miles to transport petroleum products from the Los Angeles area to Colton and Imperial, California, and east to Phoenix.

https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/west-coast-pipeline-leak-near-los-angeles-halted-gasoline-deliveries-several-states

In Complete U-turn, US Issues Temporary Sanctions Waiver To Allow Aid For Syria

 Via The Cradle,

The US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on 10 February issued a temporary waiver for Caesar Act sanctions imposed on Syria to allow earthquake relief funds to reach the country, following days of hindered humanitarian efforts.

The Syria General License (GL) 23, issued by OFAC, authorizes earthquake relief transactions – which would typically be restricted under the Syrian Sanctions Regulations (SySR) – for a period of 180 days.

Our deepest condolences go out to the people of Türkiye and Syria for the tragic loss of life and destruction in the wake of devastating earthquakes," Deputy Secretary of the US Treasury Department, Wally Adeyemo, said.

"As international allies and humanitarian partners mobilize to help those affected, I want to make very clear that U.S. sanctions in Syria will not stand in the way of life-saving efforts for the Syrian people. While U.S. sanctions programs already contain robust exemptions for humanitarian efforts, today Treasury is issuing a blanket General License to authorize earthquake relief efforts so that those providing assistance can focus on what’s needed most: saving lives and rebuilding," he added.

The decision followed a storm of criticism, as many have called out the impact of US sanctions on the humanitarian situation in the country, particularly on relief efforts following the devastating earthquake. Bassam Sabbagh, Syria’s permanent UN envoy, said on 8 February that international cargo planes have been ‘refusing’ to land in Syrian airports due to the threat of sanctions.

However, others have justified US sanctions and claimed that they do not restrict humanitarian efforts or aid provision in any way, despite repeated UN warnings over the years and in the last few days following the disaster.

However, many have pointed out that the sanctions are designed in a way that intimidates countries against dealing with the Syrian government, making it so that even when aid is involved, those who want to assist usually refrain from doing so due to the high risk of US consequences.

Senior US officials have said in the last two days that they will continue to refuse coordination with Damascus in any way, even going as far as calling it "counterproductive."

Washington claims to be working ‘on the ground’ to provide aid through its NGO ‘partners,’ however, even US-based crowdfunding platform GoFundMe has canceled fundraising campaigns of local Syrians affected by the quake who are attempting to raise money for relief.

The fact that the US Treasury Department decided to officially issue a temporary waiver for the Caesar Act serves as proof that Washington’s sanctions indeed do pose a threat to humanitarian efforts.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/complete-u-turn-us-issues-temporary-sanctions-waiver-allow-aid-syria