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Could millions of Euros spent on surveilling smugglers be put to better use?

On 5/6 October, the Protection of Critical Energy Infrastructure (PCEI) expert group - set up under the European Commission’s Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in the Defence and Security Sector (CF SEDSS) - met at the European Defence Agency (EDA) to deliver the “PCEI Conceptual Paper: Focus on European Union Defence”. This step concludes the first phase of the expert group’s work. It should assist Member States to build consensus on how to enhance best the protection and resilience of defence related Critical Energy Infrastructures.

To address the risks, vulnerabilities, capability and research shortfalls of defence related Critical Energy Infrastructures (CEI), the PCEI expert group was set up in May 2016. It’s primary task was to assess how the defence sector can apply existing EU CEI legislation to enhance the protection of defence-related CEI and improve its resilience throughout Europe. For that purpose, the group developed an EU-wide defence focused ‘PCEI Conceptual Paper’.

The chairman of the group, Colonel Georgios Drosos from the Hellenic MOD, explains that “this Paper is intended to lead to a collaborative civilian-military approach which supports EU Member States in the identification of best practices and tools which will strengthen further the resilience of defence related CEI from any failures, risks or threats, including terrorism, cyber-attacks, migration flow stress, climate change, and natural hazards”.

Martin Konertz, EDA’s Capability Armaments and Technology (CAT) Director, considers that “this PCEI Conceptual Paper will provide an important building block for increased CEI resilience in the EU as it should inform a related EU policy or guidelines and assist Member States to initiate projects of common interest with the support of the EU”.
 

Deliverables

Besides the Conceptual Paper, the PCEI expert group also produced a factsheet designed to increase collaboration, awareness and visibility. Both documents will be submitted in mid-October to the European Commission’s DG Energy for final approval. Denis Roger, EDA’s European Synergies and Innovation (ESI) Director, stated: “In order to move beyond the conceptual phase and towards a broader consensus, we will need to foster a common PCEI culture within the EU defence sector and even beyond that, in wider society. In this way, we can contribute to securing a sustainable energy supply chain for both fixed infrastructures and for CSDP operations”.
 

Background

The work of the PCEI expert group is led by the Ministries of Defence of Cyprus and Greece, supported by their respective national academia and research centres (Centre for Research & Technology Hellas – CERTH, Cyprus University of Technology, European University Cyprus, KIOS Research and Innovation Center of Excellence - University of Cyprus, National Technical University of Athens - NTUA). The Commission’s DG Energy and Joint Research Centre as well as the NATO Energy Security Centre of Excellence (ENSEC COE) also support the work of the PCEI expert group. At this stage, six EDA Member States (Bulgaria, Estonia, France, Ireland, Greece and Cyprus) are participating in the group. It is supported within the Agency at an inter-directorate level (CAT and ESI) by CAT Project Officer Protect, Dr Constantinos Hadjisavvas, and ESI Project Officer Energy and Environment Systems, Richard Brewin.
 

More information :

• Experts group looks into protection of critical energy infrastructures for defence (webnews, October 2016)
• Phase 1 of Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in Defence completed (webnews, September 2017)

The US National Football League has become the battlefield of patriotism

DIIS, KU & CBS launch new research network

A Nemzeti Kutatási, Fejlesztési és Innovációs Alap „Vállalatok K+F+I tevékenységének támogatása” című pályázati felhívásán 415,91 millió Ft állami támogatást nyert el a NORMA Instruments Zrt. által vezetett konzorcium. A 675,58 millió forint összköltségű projekt során olyan technológia kifejlesztése történik, amely képes a hematológiában a sejtfelismerés és pontos sejtszámlálás folyamatát mikro környezetben megvalósítani.

A korrekt diagnózishoz megfelelő laboratóriumi eredmények meghatározása alapvetően laboratóriumi környezetet igényel a berendezések nagy helyigénye, vegyszerfogyasztása, illetve kezelésük és karbantartásuk bonyolultsága miatt. Az egészségügyi intézmények egyre inkább igénylik az "eset helyén" eredményt szolgáltatni képes ú.n. point of care (POC) készülékeket. Napjainkban egyre több kisméretű, de megfelelő pontosságú mérőkészülék hozzáférhető, de a sejtszámlálás területe az analizátorok speciális adottságai miatt kimaradt. A NORMA Instruments Zrt. - ECOMED-Consulting Kft. konzorcium kifejlesztette a világon első valóban POC felhasználásra specifikált hematológiai analizátort. Ahhoz azonban, hogy valamennyi, a sürgősségi területen igényelt vérsejt paraméter mérhető legyen, a vérsejtek morfológiájának egy nagyságrenddel pontosabb azonosítása szükséges.

A projekt célja olyan mikrofluidikai technológia kidolgozása, amely felhasználásával az analizátorok mérete és folyadék felhasználása a szokásos mennyiség töredéke, de az elrendezés alkalmas vérkép paraméterek pontos meghatározására, beleértve az éretlen sejttípusok (így többek között a reticulocyták) koncentrációjának meghatározását. A mikrofluidika kutatási eredményeit a humán laboratóriumi diagnosztikában eddig korlátozottan használták. A hematológiában, a sejtanalizátorok területén jelenleg nem létezik olyan technológia, amely képes lenne a sejtfelismerés és pontos sejtszámlálás folyamatát mikro környezetben megvalósítani. A technológia alkalmazásával "point of care" környezetben történő méréshez is biztosítható lesz analizátor, elsősorban a sürgősségi és intenzív betegellátás, valamint a mentés területén.

Az NKFI Alap „VÁLLALATI KFI_16” pályázati kiírásán 415 913 383 Ft állami támogatást elnyert, 675 588 972 Ft összköltségvetésű projekt 2017. július 1-én indult és várhatóan 2019. április 30-án zárul.

A Nemzeti Kutatási, Fejlesztési és Innovációs Alap „Vállalatok K+F+I tevékenységének támogatása” című pályázati felhívásán 415,91 millió Ft állami támogatást nyert el a NORMA Instruments Zrt. által vezetett konzorcium. A 675,58 millió forint összköltségű projekt során olyan technológia kifejlesztése történik, amely képes a hematológiában a sejtfelismerés és pontos sejtszámlálás folyamatát mikro környezetben megvalósítani.

A korrekt diagnózishoz megfelelő laboratóriumi eredmények meghatározása alapvetően laboratóriumi környezetet igényel a berendezések nagy helyigénye, vegyszerfogyasztása, illetve kezelésük és karbantartásuk bonyolultsága miatt. Az egészségügyi intézmények egyre inkább igénylik az "eset helyén" eredményt szolgáltatni képes ú.n. point of care (POC) készülékeket. Napjainkban egyre több kisméretű, de megfelelő pontosságú mérőkészülék hozzáférhető, de a sejtszámlálás területe az analizátorok speciális adottságai miatt kimaradt. A NORMA Instruments Zrt. - ECOMED-Consulting Kft. konzorcium kifejlesztette a világon első valóban POC felhasználásra specifikált hematológiai analizátort. Ahhoz azonban, hogy valamennyi, a sürgősségi területen igényelt vérsejt paraméter mérhető legyen, a vérsejtek morfológiájának egy nagyságrenddel pontosabb azonosítása szükséges.

A projekt célja olyan mikrofluidikai technológia kidolgozása, amely felhasználásával az analizátorok mérete és folyadék felhasználása a szokásos mennyiség töredéke, de az elrendezés alkalmas vérkép paraméterek pontos meghatározására, beleértve az éretlen sejttípusok (így többek között a reticulocyták) koncentrációjának meghatározását. A mikrofluidika kutatási eredményeit a humán laboratóriumi diagnosztikában eddig korlátozottan használták. A hematológiában, a sejtanalizátorok területén jelenleg nem létezik olyan technológia, amely képes lenne a sejtfelismerés és pontos sejtszámlálás folyamatát mikro környezetben megvalósítani. A technológia alkalmazásával "point of care" környezetben történő méréshez is biztosítható lesz analizátor, elsősorban a sürgősségi és intenzív betegellátás, valamint a mentés területén.

Az NKFI Alap „VÁLLALATI KFI_16” pályázati kiírásán 415 913 383 Ft állami támogatást elnyert, 675 588 972 Ft összköltségvetésű projekt 2017. július 1-én indult és várhatóan 2019. április 30-án zárul.

Grupperne kan sikre støtte i befolkningerne ved at levere basale serviceydelser

As key players in contemporary conflicts, many armed non-state actors provide services to civilians in order to win legitimacy in their areas of control. Sometimes the civilian population comes to rely on them rather than the state for services. A more nuanced approach to engaging with armed groups is therefore vital in order to resolve conflicts.

Cooperation and competition rather than conflict remain the norm

Der er al mulig grund til at se kritisk på lokalregeringens udmelding om, at den efter ”folkeafstemningen” søndag har vundet retten til at erklære sig selvstændig

Freedom of expression is the right of every person to think as he wishes and to be able to express his opinions by any means he deems appropriate in the fields of politics, philosophy, religion, morals. Freedom of expression in a democratic country of the European Union is considered illegal. In a EU that never hesitates to give lessons in human rights and democracy, for example to African or Balkans countries.

According to Barcelona, the YES has won with 90% of the votes. Some 2.26 million people voted and 2.02 million voted in favor of independence. These figures represent a participation of almost 42.3%, Catalonia counting 5.34 million voters.

The referendum is quite illegal under the Spanish Constitution and the interpretation given to it by the Spanish Constitutional Court. ("It is not within the competence of the autonomies to hold consultations ... which have an impact on the fundamental issues resolved by the constitutional process.") But it is legal according to the Catalan law.

CERPESC European Solutions for Defence & Crisis Management //--> Tag: Catalunyafreedom of expression

Over the years, we've seen a number of different presidents, each with his own approach to the Middle East. For example:

• Carter favored the Arabs, and even today shows a clear bias against Israel.
• George W. Bush tried to be more even-handed, and during his 8-year term never invited Arafat to the White House -- unlike his predecessor, Bill Clinton.
• Obama showed a clear bias towards the Arabs. His first trip was to address the Arab world from Cairo.

But nothing Obama said to the Arab world compares to this appeal, ostensibly by Franklin Delano Roosevelt to the Arabs of West Africa:
Praise be unto the only God. In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful. O ye Moslems. O ye beloved sons of the Maghreb. May the blessing of God be upon you.

This is a great day for you and us, for all the sons of Adam who love freedom. Our numbers are as the leaves on the forest tress and as the grains of sand in the sea.

Behold. We the American Holy Warriors have arrived. We have come here to fight the great Jihad of Freedom.


We have come to set you free. We have sailed across the great sea in many ships, on many beaches we are landing, and our fighters swarm across the sands and into the city streets, and into the wide country sides, and along the highways.

Light fires on the hilltops; shout from your housetops, and from the high places, and say the sound of the drum be heard in the land, and the ululation of the women, and the voices even of small children.

Assemble along the highways to welcome your brothers.

We have come to set you free.

Speak with our fighting men and you will find them pleasing to the eye and gladdening to the heart. We are not as some other Christians whom ye have known, and who trample you under foot. Our soldiers consider you as their brothers, for we have been reared in the way of free men. Our soldiers have been told about your country and about their Moslem brothers and they will treat you with respect and with a friendly spirit in the eyes of God.

Look in their eyes and smiling faces, for they are Holy Warriors happy in their holy work. Greet us therefore as brothers as we will greet you, and help us.

If we are thirsty, show us the way to water. If we lose our way, lead us back to our camping places. Show us the paths over the mountains if need be, and if you see our enemies, the Germans or Italians, making trouble for us, kill them with knives or with stones or with any other weapon that you may have set your hands upon.

Help us as we have come to help you, and rich will be the reward unto us all who love justice and righteousness and freedom.

Pray for our success in battle, and help us, and God will help us both.

Lo, the day of freedom hath come.

May God grant his blessing upon you and upon us.

--Roosevelt [emphasis added]

This is from October 1942, when the British were able to stop Hitler's Afrika Korps at El Alamein during WWII. The Allies were finally confident they could keep the Nazis out of the Middle East. Leaflets containing Arabic translations of the appeal were distributed as part of the effort to exploit the situation by winning over the Muslims to their side.

The text was actually written by 2 US agents with help from one of their Muslim spies. Still, one would imagine that Roosevelt would have had to give his approval since his name appeared at the end of the text.

The text goes pretty far in order to win over his audience:

• The text uses the phrase "Holy Warriors," likely translated as Mujahideen, a term for those engaged in Jihad.
• The term Jihad implies more than a war. It was a religious obligation, so calling it a Jihad of Freedom might have sounded a bit strange to the Arab ear. Apparently, unlike today, there was no doubt as to the meaning of the word.
• Referring to the enemy as "other Christians" seems odd and unnecessary. Later, FDR identifies them as "Germans or Italians." But why identify them by religion? What is to be gained by establishing them as kuffar when the Allied forces themselves were Christian?
• The phrase "kill them with knives or with stones or with any other weapon that you may have set your hands upon" is one that could easily have been written by Hamas, or ISIS, today. That was a simpler time, when it was acknowledged that a stone was a weapon. Basically, the US itself was encouraging terrorism -- even lone wolf terrorism -- against its enemies.

It's not clear that the leaflets had any effect.
Meanwhile, the Germans made their own attempt to win over the Arabs.
In the spring of 1943, in an attempt to win over the Arabs to the Nazi side, Himmler wanted to "find out which passages of the Qur'an provide Muslims with the basis for the opinion that the Fuhrer has already been forecast in the Qur'an and that he has been authorized to complete the work of the Prophet."

Himmler was disappointed - there were no verses to support that claim, so something a bit more modest was suggested. Hitler could be advertised as “the returned ‘Isa (Jesus), who is forecast in the Qur’an and who, similar to the figure of the Knight George, defeats the giant and Jew-King Dajjal at the end of the world."

That led to printing one million pamphlets in Arabic to convince the Arabs to side with Germany. A sample:
O Arabs, do you see that the time of the Dajjal has come? Do you recognize him, the fat, curly-haired Jew who deceives and rules the whole world and who steals the land of the Arabs?… O Arabs, do you know the servant of God? He [Hitler] has already appeared in the world and already turned his lance against the Dajjal and his allies…. He will kill the Dajjal, as it is written, destroy his places and cast his allies into hell.The effort was a failure. The Arabs ended up preferring to fight on the side of the British in North Africa and the Middle East.

The efforts of the Nazis to enlist the help of the Arabs were based purely on pragmatic reasons, and not out of admiration for the Muslims themselves.

There are Nazi writing that refer to Islam as "the great retarder, which prevented all progress."

However, Hitler himself preferred Islam over Christianity, and felt that the actual problem was that Arabs didn't make the best Muslims:
...He reportedly described Islam as a more muscular belief system than Christianity and thus better suited for the Germany he wished to build.

According to Albert Speer, Hitler once offered a remarkable counterfactual history of Europe. He speculated about what might have been if the Muslim forces that invaded France during the eighth century had prevailed against their Frankish enemies at the Battle of Tours. “Hitler said that the conquering Arabs, because of their racial inferiority, would in the long run have been unable to contend with the harsher climate” of Northern Europe. Therefore, “ultimately not Arabs but Islamized Germans could have stood at the head of this Mohammedan Empire.Whether adopting The Muslim terminology, like the US or adapting and remaking Islam as the Nazis attempted, a lot of effort was put into winning over the Muslims as part of the war effort.

In the end, the Nazis failed miserably and the US pursuit of a 'Jihad of Freedom' is as distant as ever, and even their own "Arab Spring" did not last.

And no president since Roosevelt appears to have any better grasp of the Middle East.







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Pernille RIEKER, French Foreign Policy in a Changing World: Practising Grandeur. Palgrave MacMillan, Londres, 2017



Il n'est jamais facile d'écrire avec justesse sur la politique étrangère d'un autre pays. A cet égard il convient de saluer la publication du livre de Pernille Rieker sur la politique étrangère de la France, qui se distingue dans cet exercice pour au moins trois raisons: l'auteur ne sur-théorise pas, et délaisse avec raison ce terrible appauvrissement académique qui consiste à tout réduire à la question agent-structure ; elle évite également les clichés habituels sur le gaullisme, l'ENA, etc., qui marquent encore trop souvent la littérature scientifique anglo-saxonne sur la France ; enfin elle propose un tour d'horizon certes non exhaustif mais pertinent, des grands dossiers de notre diplomatie (Afrique, Russie, Etats-Unis, OTAN, terrorisme...). Si un chapitre à part entière sur l'Europe eut été utile, on ne peut s'empêcher de penser que son absence (l'ouvrage a été achevé avant l'élection d'Emmanuel Macron) est significative. Idem sur l'Asie ou l'Amérique du Sud, rarement présentées à Paris comme des priorités. Tout au plus pourrait-on souhaiter une perspective plus assumée sur les approches de la Méditerrannée et du Proche-Orient (les cas libyen ou syrien sont néanmoins bel et bien discutés).
Mais l'essentiel est ailleurs. Pernille Rieker, dont les travaux au sein du Norvegian Institute of International Affairs font référence, pose des questions justes : Paris a-il  plus de leviers ou au contraire moins de "grandeur", dans un monde globalisé et régionalisé? Comment  la France peut-elle continuer à influencer le monde, plaider pour son exceptionnalisme, compte tenu de ressources contraintes qui l'obligent souvent à boxer au-dessus de sa catégorie ? Réponse: par la promotion des valeurs liées à son universalisme, ou perçues comme telles. Elle peut compter pour cela sur plusieurs atouts: un rôle global qui lui confère une légitimité historique, des institutions et une élite administrative fortes, une présence dans les principales institutions internationales, des instruments de projection qui participent aussi bien du hard power (l'outil militaire) que du soft power (diplomatie culturelle).
En opposant la puissance matérielle à la puissance symbolique, et en croyant davantage à la seconde qu'à la première, la chercheuse lance un vrai débat, qui rejoint celui sur lesintérêts opposés aux valeurs dans l'action extérieure. On pourrait lui objecter que c'est le discours français qui était en panne, plutôt que l'outil matériel (comme l'ont montré les récentes opérations militaires, au Mali, en Centrafrique, en Libye...). C'est le message symbolique qui n'était plus perçu, alors même que la puissance structurelle demeure (l'image de la France dans le Sud, notamment s'est considérablement brouillée dans les dernières années). On  peut aussi estimer que puissance symbolique et puissance matérielle se rejoignent dans la pratique concrète, car une diplomatie d'influence digne de ce nom a un coût, et croire qu'on peut la décréter "à moyens constants" est une dangereuse illusion. Mais l'important était de briser le tabou et de poser la question.
En liant le destin de la France comme puissance d'influence à sa capacité à réinventer l'universalisme, Pernille Rieker ouvre encore un chantier important, valable également d'ailleurs pour le Royaume-Uni, l'Allemagne, même les Etats-Unis, et le monde occidental en général.
Après plusieurs discours de politique étrangère du nouveau président, et les premières indications sur la tonalité de ce que pourrait être un "macronisme de politique étrangère", les questions posées dans l'ouvrage apparaissent plus pertinentes encore. Comme si la nouvelle équipe au pouvoir, elle aussi, se posait la question de la pérennité de l'influence française, avec déjà quelques éléments de réponse, proches des hypothèses de Pernille Rieker. La réinvention du message universaliste est un souci visible à Paris, qui semble passer par la promotion du multilatéralisme ("multilateralism is the new universalism", pour reprendre une structure de phrase à la mode). La reconquête de l'influence telle que proposée se fait en trois temps: 1- dégager des marges de manœuvre budgétaires et montrer une crédibilité sérieuse dans la remise en ordre de la gestion intérieure ; 2- relancer le projet européen, meilleure garantie de notre rôle dans le monde ; 3- enfin, à partir de ce socle, proposer ensuite un agenda international. On retrouve bien la dialectique entre puissance symbolique et puissance matérielle, discutée dans le livre. Mais on retrouve aussi les mises en garde sous-jacentes qu'implique ce travail: le système international, comme régional, est bien là, avec ses acteurs et ses contraintes. La France ne pourra, seule, réinventer le multilatéralisme ni imposer le dialogue, si elle n'est pas suivie par d'autres sur ce terrain. Un Donald Trump à la Maison Blanche, une Angela Merkel maintenue mais affaiblie, une Grande-Bretagne qui doute, une Europe orientale qui se crispe, ne seront pas pour aider.
La France "compte toujours", pour répondre à une question posée jadis par un ouvrage antérieur. Et Pernille Rieker le prouve, en s'y intéressant au point de lui consacrer un livre. Mais la "pratique de la grandeur" devra suivre une voie parsemée d'embûches.

En svækket Merkel vil få svært ved at føre an

The President of Estonia visited DIIS

How al-Qaeda and Islamic State expands into Burkina Faso

“Expanding Jihad” analyzes the reasons behind new hotspots for al-Qaeda and IS

Through a dual process of exportation and repression

Both internal factors and the explicit ambition of IS enable jihadists in Bangladesh

The fifth and last meeting of the Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in the Defence and Security Sector (CF SEDSS) was held in Thessaloniki on 19-21 September 2017.

The conference was opened by His Excellency Panos Kammenos (Hellenic Minister of National Defence), Mr Jorge Domecq (Chief Executive of the European Defence Agency, EDA), Mr Tudor Constantinescu (Principal Adviser to the Director-General Energy of the European Commission) and Professor Athansios Konstandopoulos, the Chairman of Centre for Research and Technology Hellas (CERTH). Mr Dominique Ristori, the Director-General of the Directorate-General Energy of the European Commission, greeted the participants by video message. It was closed by Mr Denis Roger, the European Synergies and Innovation Director at the EDA.

Opening the conference, EDA Chief Executive Jorge Domecq thanked the participants for the active involvement in the Forum over the last two years. He also used the opportunity to give direction for the future: “As we move to the next phase of the Consultation Forum, we need to focus on defence energy projects and their funding. We need to focus on results.”

As possible project areas, Mr Domecq highlighted infrastructure improvements leading for example to the refurbishment of buildings to Nearly Zero Energy Building standards. Projects relating to the assessment of renewable energy technologies could be analysed for where investments could be made to make commercial renewable energy technologies suitable for military use. Finally, there could also be scope to develop policy tools and training on raising energy awareness as well as the development of tools for optimum technology selection.

European Commission Director-General Dominique Ristori said the energy transition was a “top priority of the European Union”. “It is not only about energy and climate alone. It is about accelerating the fundamental modernisation of Europe's entire economy, making it low-carbon, energy and resource efficient, in a socially fair manner. And making it less dependent on imports. It requires the transformation of the whole energy system. All sectors need to contribute and to reap the benefits. I am therefore very pleased that we will continue with the second phase of the Consultation Forum as of October. This would allow, inter alia, a deeper analysis of the issues at stake and the identification of bottlenecks that need to be resolved to allow the defence sector to benefit fully from sustainable energy and to use the energy transition as a major economic opportunity”, he stated.

The aim of this week’s last meeting of the Consultation Forum was to reach agreement on the content of final report with recommendations for a more implementation focused second phase. The conference was attended by around 100 experts from government administrations, as well as industry, academia, NATO representatives and the European Commission. In total, there have been five conferences of this first phase of the Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in the Defence and Security Sector.
In closing the conference, Director European Synergies and Innovation Denis Roger highlighted, that “we have built a defence energy community which did not exist before”.

Second phase

The second phase of the Consultation Forum will have an implementation focus to take the knowledge developed in the first phase and turn this into results. The focus will remain on energy efficiency, renewable energy sources, and the protection of critical energy infrastructure in relation to the implications of relevant EU legislation when applied to the defence sector’s infrastructure. This means that results will have direct benefits for the delivery of defence infrastructure capability, while contributing to the broader objectives of the Energy Union.

Background

The Consultation Forum for Sustainable Energy in the Defence and Security Sector is a European Commission initiative managed by the European Defence Agency. It brings together experts from the defence and energy sectors to share information and best practice on improving energy management, energy efficiency, and the use of renewable energy. The Consultation Forum has taken place in a series of five plenary meetings over 24 months, and its first phase will be concluded in October 2017.
The work is carried out in three parallel working groups each with a particular focus: (1) Energy Management, (2) Energy Efficiency & 3) Renewable Energy. There was also a Protection of Critical Energy Infrastructure PCEI) Experts Group which developed a conceptual paper on PCEI.

 

More information

• Consultation Forum webpage