Archiv: priorities
The EU boasted of #Russia’s disconnection from SWIFT. But they shut down only 7 of 300 banks. The largest bank, Sberbank, evaded sanctions. And Gazprombank too.
This bank helped Russian Defense Ministry buy unmanned aerial vehicles & electronic reconnaissance equipment.
Afghanistan war has cost Britain more than £37bn, new book claims
(30 May 2013)
Since 2006, on a conservative estimate, it has cost £15m a day to maintain Britain’s military presence in Helmand province. The equivalent of £25,000 will have been spent for every one of Helmand’s 1.5 million inhabitants, more than most of them will earn in a lifetime, it says.
By 2020, the author of a new book says, Britain will have spent at least £40bn on its Afghan campaign, enough to recruit over 5,000 police officers or nurses and pay for them throughout their careers. It could fund free tuition for all students in British higher education for 10 years.
Britain’s war in Afghanistan cost taxpayers £22bn, as final pullout underway
(08.06.2021)
And the final cost is likely to be even higher because the bill disclosed by Defence Minister James Heappey only counts cash from a special Whitehall pot for the conflict.
Revealing the cost in a written parliamentary answer, Mr Heappey said: “As at May 2021, the total cost of Operation Herrick to HM Treasury Special Reserve is £22.2billion.”
UK military and civilian fatalities in Afghanistan 2001-2020
Published by D. Clark, Sep 21, 2020
Between UK October 2001 to March 2020 there have been 454 fatalities of military and civilians for the United Kingdom in Afghanistan under Operation Herrick. The years with the most fatalities were 2009 and 2010, with both years seeing more than a hundred deaths.
Costs of the Afghanistan war, in lives and dollars
American service members killed in Afghanistan through April: 2,448.
U.S. contractors: 3,846.
Afghan national military and police: 66,000.
Other allied service members, including from other NATO member states: 1,144.
The war in Afghanistan has cost $2.26 trillion, and the bill will keep rising even after last US troops leave
The two-decade war has cost the US $2.26 trillion, according to researchers at Brown University.
That analysis doesn’t include the costs of lifetime care for veterans or future interest on money the US borrowed for the war.
Merkel opposes US move to waive vaccine IP, the drive behind the commodity supercycle
German chancellor says waiver would have serious implications for production worldwide
Pfizer, Moderna shares plummet after Biden administration backs a COVID-19 vaccine patent waiver
The Biden administration „believes strongly in intellectual property protections,“ Tai said in a statement, but the White House will back the waiver given the „extraordinary circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic.“ The administration has faced pressure to support the measure, which is aimed at increasing vaccinations around the world — especially in countries experiencing a surge in infections, like India — without having to rely solely on exports.
Patients face TWO YEAR wait for vital operations due to ‘frightening’ backlog caused by Covid crisis
The pandemic has led to a widespread suspension of normal NHS diagnostic tests and surgery as hospitals prioritised saving Covid victims.
This has left the service in England with a record 4.59 million people waiting for hospital treatment.
Sir David told the Guardian: „The backlog is truly frightening. We can very easily get to the next election with people waiting over two years.
German media savages the EU for its vaccine shambles and tears into Ursula von der Leyen’s UK jabs threat – while jealously admiring ‚Brexit Brits‘ for ordering vaccines THREE MONTHS before Brussels
Embarrassingly for the bloc, it appears that Germany, the Netherlands, France and Italy had originally been looking to do a deal with AstraZeneca in May alongside the UK – but were blocked by the EU, which insisted it take over negotiations.
According to ITV’s Robert Peston: ‚The extra talks with the European Commission led to no material changes to the contract, but wasted time on making arrangements to make the vaccine with partner sites.‘
Senate confirms Biden’s intel chief, giving him first Cabinet official
Senators voted 84-10 to confirm Haines, who appears to be the only Cabinet official Biden will get confirmed on the first day of his administration.
President Joe Biden signs executive orders reversing Trump’s policies including mask mandate and immigration reform
Mr Biden’s immediate priority was the pandemic, but climate change and immigration are high on his agenda too
For dignity’s sake, Jim Jordan, put on a jacket
All the other members of the House Intelligence Committee turned up in suits and ties or other business attire. But not Jordan. Everyone else was willing to offer at least a symbolic nod to decorous formality, to that old-fashioned notion of civility.