Hegseth To NATO Allies: You Can't Turn 'Uncle Sam Into Uncle Sucker'

 "Make no mistake, President Trump will not allow anyone to turn Uncle Sam into 'Uncle Sucker,'" US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told a press conference at NATO headquarters in Brussels. Sky News and others subsequently declared, now NATO gets the MAGA treatment...

Hegseth brought a message saying "we must make NATO great again" and called on European allies to do "far more for Europe's defense" - such as ramping up defense spending to 5% of GDP in line with Trump policy. The Pentagon chief laid out that he's been given "clear mission" from the Commander-in-Chief to "achieve peace through strength as well as put America first".

Associated Press

This is being done, he explained, by "reviving the warrior ethos, rebuilding our military and re-establishing deterrence".

"NATO should pursue these goals as well," Hegseth added. "NATO is a great alliance, the most successful defence alliance in history. But to endure for the future, our partners must do far more for Europe's defense."

When asked about US military funding for Ukraine moving forward, Hegseth responded: "I think it would be fair to say that things like future funding, either less or more, could be on the table in negotiations."

The day prior he shocked European partners by declaring that there will be no future admission of Ukraine into NATO. Commenting on follow-up questions regarding Trump's commitment to NATO, one UK correspondent observed the following:

[Mark] Stone says Hegseth's messaging was "so clear", particularly when asked if America was still committed to article five, which states that an attack on one NATO nation is effectively treated as an attack on all of NATO.

"He was quite clear that, yes, America is a NATO member and article five stands," Stone explains.

"I think that will be very encouraging for anyone who is under any confusion about that yesterday."

Indeed Hegseth rejected accusations that the US stance is undermining NATO security and stability. "NATO is a great alliance, the most successful defense alliance in history, but to endure for the future our partners must do far more for Europe's defense. We must make NATO great again," he said during the presser from Brussels.

His reference to not allowing the United States to be a sucker came at the very end of the remarks:

Hegseth says at the end of Eisenhower's presidency, he was concerned Europe was not shouldering enough of its own defense, "nearly making, in Eisenhower's words, a sucker out of Uncle Sam".

He finishes by saying Trump "will not allow anyone to turn Uncle Sam into Uncle Sucker".

Realism... is not a concession to Putin, but an acknowledgement of reality on the ground...

Clearly, MAGA has put Europe on notice, and it's evident to all particularly when it comes to rapidly moving forward with diplomatic engagement with Putin and negotiations to settle the war.

Hegseth just dropped the mic at the NATO summit...

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/hegseth-nato-allies-you-cant-turn-uncle-sam-uncle-sucker

Shipping Rates Of Russian Crude To India Surge 20% Amid Sanctions

 By Alex Kimani of OilPrice.com

Freight rates to ship Russian urals from Baltic ports to India jumped 20% in February to $7 million to $8 million per voyage after the Biden administration imposed harsher sanctions on Russian crude. 

Russia's provisional February loading plan for western ports was revised up by 19% to 1.9 million barrels per day, Reuters calculations showed early this month. Russian refineries are processing more crude oil in the hope of boosting fuel exports after the Biden administration imposed fresh sanctions on Russian crude. The sanctions have targeted Surgutneftgas and Gazprom Neft, two Russian oil firms that handle 25% of Russian oil exports. The two companies shipped an average of 970,000 bbls a day in 2024. 

"We have to utilize oil processing as much as we can in order to use (the sanctioned) oil," a Russian industry source said.

Middlemen who supply Russian oil have stopped offering cargoes after the latest U.S. sanctions, Bharat Petroleum CFO has revealed. Bharat Petroleum and other Indian state refiners buy Russian oil in the spot market, mainly from traders.

"We have not received any new offers for the March window (delivery). Traders are asking us to wait. We are waiting to get offers," Vetsa Ramakrishna Gupta told Reuters. 

"We are not expecting the similar number of cargoes that we used to get in the months of December and January," he added.

The Indian government is considering extra energy imports from the United States, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits the country and a scheduled meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump. Modi is set to hold bilateral talks with Trump.

Meanwhile, India’s oil demand growth is estimated to have exceeded China’s for the first time in 2024, and is expected to do so again in 2025. According to Kang Wu, global head of macro and oil demand research at SPGCI, India’s oil demand in the current year grew by 180,000 barrels per day, surpassing China’s growth at 148,000 bpd. India’s oil demand is expected to increase by 3.2% Y/Y in 2025 compared to a 1.7% clip by China. 

https://www.zerohedge.com/economics/shipping-rates-russian-crude-india-surge-20-amid-sanctions

What many people don’t realize about hair transplant surgery — and an ‘alarming trend’

 Once stigmatized, hair transplant surgery has become an increasingly popular solution for hair loss in recent years.

In 2021, approximately 703,183 hair transplant procedures were performed globally, with 149,254 of these in the USA and Canada, according to the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS). 

The market is expected to grow from $11.55 billion in 2024 to $44.79 billion by 2033, representing a compound annual growth rate of 16.25% from 2025 to 2033. 

Speaking to The Post, Texas facial plastic surgeon and hair restoration expert Dr. Samuel Lam confirmed hair transplant surgeries were “definitely on the rise.”

What many people don’t realize about hair transplant surgery is that it actually often takes several procedures to achieve the desired result.New Africa – stock.adobe.com

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“With increased awareness on social media and by celebrities, I am seeing a lot more patients coming in,” said Lam, who is also a board member of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS). 

Celebrities like Joel McHale, Queer Eye’s Bobby Berk and English soccer star Wayne Rooney have spoken publicly about their hair transplants, thereby normalizing a procedure that was once viewed as somewhat shameful. And it’s not just the men anymore.

“In addition to men, I am seeing an increase in women who come in for transplants and they make up a large percentage of my patient base,” Lam noted. 

While the majority of male hair transplant procedures are performed on men (87%), women make up 12% of the market, according to the ISHRS. 

A hair transplant involves moving hair from one part of the head to an area that is balding or thinning. 

The two primary methods used today are Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT) — in which hair follicles are individually extracted before being transplanted — and Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) — in which a strip of scalp tissue is removed before being divided into grafts. 

“In addition to men, I am seeing an increase in women who come in for transplants and they make up a large percentage of my patient base,” Lam noted. Ivan – stock.adobe.com

But what many people don’t realize about hair transplant surgery is that it actually often takes several procedures to achieve the desired result — a consideration any responsible medical professional has to take when advising patients. 

“The most important ethical consideration when working with young men is whether to perform a transplant for them since a surgery commits them to a need for more surgeries down the line and is never scarless whether it is an FUT or FUE procedure,” Lam said. “Medical therapy should be an important part of every consultation, especially for the young male.”

Granted, this may be changing due to technological advancements. According to a 2022 ISHRS survey, 68% of members performed an average of only one procedure in 2021, down from 3.5 procedures in 2019 and 5 in 2016.

But this doesn’t mean the future for hair transplants is entirely bright, or that it isn’t without its dangers. 

“An alarming trend is patients who now go to perform a hair transplant by a physician who does not consult the patient about his or her hair loss nor is he actively involved in the surgery,” Lam said.

“This is truly a big problem in the industry and can cross legal issues where unlicensed individuals are performing the surgery without adequate supervision or where the surgeon is not even involved with the procedure.”

He noted that this troubling practice is “most rampant” in Turkey — where hair transplant surgery has exploded due to its relative affordability — but it is “also extremely prevalent in the US, unfortunately.”

Plastic surgery for men, or “man-esthetics” has been on the rise in recent years. According to a recent survey by the AAFPRS, 92% of its surgeons treated male patients last year, up 5% from 2023.

Dr. Patrick J. Byrne, president of AAFPRS, previously told The Post, “Men, like women, want to maintain a youthful, healthy and refreshed appearance and with so many minimally invasive options, more men are embracing discreet, quick-healing treatments than ever before.”

https://nypost.com/2025/02/13/health/what-many-people-dont-realize-about-hair-transplant-surgery/