Department Press Briefing – June 17, 2025

2:22 p.m. EDT MS BRUCE: Thank you, ma’am. Thank you. Hi, everyone. Hi. Welcome back. Appreciate you being here. Thank you. Everyone set? We’re good? Great. Welcome aboard, everyone. Thank you again for being here. For generations the Middle East has been dealing with the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism, with the attack on […]

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Ukraine Reports Extensive Russian Drone and Rocket Attacks, Resulting in Civilian Casualties

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that on Tuesday, Russia launched a large-scale assault on Ukraine, deploying over 440 drones and 32 rockets across multiple regions of the country. The capital city, Kyiv, experienced the most severe impact, with a missile striking a residential block and causing significant destruction. The attacks resulted in at least 15 […]

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China and Kazakhstan Sign Two Dozen Agreements to Strengthen Bilateral Ties During President Xi Jinping’s State Visit

During a recent state visit to Kazakhstan, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Kazakhstani officials signed approximately two dozen agreements aimed at enhancing bilateral cooperation between the two countries. This significant diplomatic engagement underscores the growing strategic partnership between China and Kazakhstan, particularly in areas such as trade, infrastructure, energy, and regional security. The agreements cover […]

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EUROCONTROL to Host Smart Sustainable Skies Summit in November 2025

EUROCONTROL has announced its Showcase Summit: Smart Sustainable Skies, scheduled for November 17–18, 2025, at its Brussels Headquarters. The two-day event will focus on reducing aviation’s environmental impact and advancing sustainable solutions. Summit Highlights The summit will bring together developers, researchers, industry leaders, policymakers, and sustainability professionals to discuss cutting-edge strategies for greener aviation. Attendees […]

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Gang Leader Convicted in Brutal Wilmington Kidnapping and Execution

WILMINGTON, Del. – A Philadelphia gang leader has been convicted in connection with the kidnapping and execution-style murder of a Wilmington resident, marking the sixth conviction in the case. Dwayne Alexander, 41, a high-ranking member of the Shotgun Crips, was found guilty by a federal jury on June 5, 2025, for his role in the […]

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Oklahoma Man Sentenced for Death and Injury of Two-Month-Old Twins

Michael David Gregory, a 30-year-old resident of Commerce, Oklahoma, has been sentenced to 240 months in federal prison for the death of a two-month-old infant and the assault of the child’s twin sister, both of whom suffered severe brain and eye injuries. Case Details and Charges Gregory pleaded guilty to: According to court documents, Gregory […]

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Afghan National Pleads Guilty to Election Day Terror Plot in the U.S.

Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, a 27-year-old Afghan national, pleaded guilty in federal court in Oklahoma City to two terrorism-related offenses, admitting to plotting an Election Day attack in 2024 on behalf of ISIS. Charges and Investigation Tawhedi was charged with: According to court documents, Tawhedi conspired between June and October 2024 to purchase two AK-47 rifles, […]

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Smarter science: staying one step ahead of the next pandemic

As the world woke up to a global pandemic in early 2020, a new EU-funded research initiative was just getting underway – the Versatile Emerging Infectious Diseases Observatory (VEO). The researchers involved in this timely initiative had set out to improve how we respond to public health emergencies through better disease surveillance. Their efforts became […]

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New simplification proposal will speed up defence investments in the EU

  The European Commission has proposed new measures to cut red tape and facilitate the €800 billion of investment that EU countries need to ensure their defence industries can deliver at speed and scale. The measures build on the vision set out in the White Paper for European Defence-Readiness 2030 that identified simplifying and harmonising […]

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Defence firms must adopt a ‘flexible secrecy’ to innovate for European rearmament

In the face of US President Donald Trump’s wavering commitments and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inscrutable ambitions, the talk in European capitals is all about rearmament. To that end, the European Commission has put forward an €800 billion spending scheme designed to “quickly and significantly increase expenditures in defence capabilities”, in the words of Commission President […]

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