DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

Berlin has veto power over any decision to export its Leopard tanks, fielded by NATO-allied armies across Europe and seen by defence experts as the most suitable for Ukraine. Chancellor Olaf Scholz has stressed the condition about U.S. tanks several times in recent days behind closed doors, the German government source said, speaking on condition of anonymity. This week, Britain raised the pressure on Berlin by becoming the first Western country to send tanks, pledging a squadron of its Challengers. Poland and Finland have already said they will send Leopard tanks if Germany approves them. "The supplies of Western tanks must outpace another invasion of Russian tanks."

☆ Ukraine has repeatedly pleaded for tanks to fight Russia — its Western allies could now be ready to provide them
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Sean Gallup | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesUkraine has repeatedly asked its Western allies to provide it with battle tanks to help it fight Russia but up until now, its Western allies appeared reluctant to do so, fearing the provision of offensive weapons could provoke Moscow further. Last week, the White House again declined to say whether the U.S. would specifically provide Ukraine with main battle tanks. Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty ImagesThe impasse over tanks seemed to break when the U.K. announced at the weekend that it would be sending 14 Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine. Poland's President Andrzej Duda reiterated his calls for Ukraine to receive more Western tanks when he appeared on a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Tuesday. Ukrainian armed forces' soldiers drive a T-72 tank on the outskirts of Bakhmut, eastern Ukraine on December 21, 2022.

☆ The 3 best tanks on earth
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-15 | by ( Brent M. Eastwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The three best tanks on Earth, let the debate begin: Are tanks still useful in the 21st century? I can offer three tanks that deserve clear recognition as the three best tanks on Earth, although I will admit, there is room for debate. Here are all of the reasons why:3 best tanks on earth: Meet the M1 AbramsAn M1A2 Abrams fires a sabot round. 3 best tanks on earth: Meet the K2 Black PantherA South Korean K-2 tank in June 2012. 3 best tanks on earth: the German LeopardGerman army Leopard 2 tanks in Munster in October 2015.

☆ UK to supply tanks as Russian missiles hit across Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Earlier this month, France said it would send AMX-10 RC armored combat vehicles to Ukraine, designated “light tanks” in French. Sunak’s announcement came as Russian forces fired missiles at Kyiv and other parts of Ukraine on Saturday in the first major barrage in days. In the northeastern Kharkiv region, Gov. On Saturday morning, two Russian missiles hit Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. But that cuts both ways, as Ukraine says its fierce defense of the eastern strongholds has helped tie up Russian forces.

☆ The UK says sending Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine is a potential 'game changer' in the war. This is how they could impact the conflict.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The UK confirmed it will send a small number of Challenger 2 tanks to Ukraine. The powerful tank would easily outmatch any Russian battle tanks, an expert told Insider. Representatives for Poland said on Wednesday that the country plans to transfer Leopard tanks to Ukraine, but needs Berlin's permission to re-export them. The Challenger 2 is far superior to Russia's battle tanksThe powerful Challenger 2 tanks would easily outmatch Russia's battle tanks, mainly the Soviet-era T-72s, Crump said. In the first Gulf War in 1991, a British Challenger tank scored the longest tank-on-tank kill ever, according to reports, after knocking out an Iraqi tank three miles away.

☆ Georgia GOP Gov. Brian Kemp says Trump 'didn't do a good enough job' of making the case for a second term in 2020
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Kemp told the outlet that Trump "didn't do a good enough job of telling people what he had done." Kemp, who was inaugurated to a second term this week, has been floated as a potential 2024 presidential contender. Brian Kemp of Georgia for not helping him overturn now-President Joe Biden's victory in the Southern swing state in the 2020 election. "President Trump and his reelection didn't do a good enough job of telling people what he had done and what he wanted to do in a second term," the governor told the outlet. Trump, who lost to Biden in the 2020 presidential election, has continued to allege that voter fraud was the culprit behind his ejection from the White House.

☆ Explainer: West mulls sending German Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

BERLIN APPROVALThe re-export of Leopards requires German government approval, so other countries with such tanks could not send them to Ukraine without it. WHY HAS THE WEST NOT SENT BATTLE TANKS TO KYIV SO FAR? The Leopard 2 is one of the most widely used Western tanks. Germany has about 350 Leopard 2 tanks today, compared to some 4,000 battle main tanks at the height of the Cold War, German military expert Carl Schulze says. WHAT OTHER WESTERN BATTLE TANKS ARE THERE?

☆ Democrats have a Gen Z problem
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Samuel Abrams | Jeremi Suri | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

November's midterms heralded a new force in American politics: Gen Z voters. Given the narrow margins and the Democrats' ability to retain the Senate despite historical precedent, commentators and analysts declared that Gen Z helped Democrats thwart a Republican wave. Gen Z isn't sold on the whole 'party' thingAmericans are increasingly unhappy with the two-party system. Given these circumstances, Democrats shouldn't take the political loyalty of Gen Z voters for granted. Despite assumptions about their left leanings, members of Gen Z are not firmly behind the Democratic Party, President Joe Biden, or many other well-known Democrats.

The GOP-controlled House passes a rules package for 118th Congress with just one GOP defection, NBC’s Kyle Stewart reports. ... President Biden spends his final day in Mexico City at North American Leaders’ Summit. But first: The news that the Justice Department is reviewing Obama Era classified documents found at a think tank tied to President Biden is quite a political gift to Donald Trump. “When is the FBI going to raid the many homes of Joe Biden, perhaps even the White House?” Trump posted on his Truth Social account. 6: The number of shootings recently at or near the homes of New Mexico Democratic political leaders, including the incoming state House speaker.

The debate centers on the precise form and function of the new fighting vehicles — but it misses the point. (The guns on the Bradley and Marder are smaller-caliber, while the AMX is wheeled rather than tracked.) And despite the downsides of providing these more sophisticated vehicles, armored vehicles can help capture ground whereas artillery, even if more lethal and at least as important, by itself can’t. A Marder infantry fighting vehicle of the German armed forces participates in the NATO Iron Wolf military exercises on Oct. 26, 2022, in Pabrade, Lithuania. Nonetheless, supplying new, tougher armored vehicles will improve Ukraine’s ability to liberate territory.

☆ The tank-killing armored vehicle that France is sending to Ukraine is 'a bit of an oddity,' but don't call it a tank
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-08 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

France said on January 5 that it would send the AMX-10RC armored vehicle to Ukraine. The "tank" vs. "armored vehicle" debate is a long and often contentious one, but AMX-10RCs are armored reconnaissance vehicles and not tanks, which usually have large-caliber main guns, heavy-duty armor, and tracks. Fighting there has become trench warfare, with incremental gains rather than sweeping armored offensives in which fast, armored scout vehicles excel. Armored vehicles are still vital on the battlefield, but an armored car may have limited utility against swarms of anti-tank missiles, attack drones, and smart artillery shells. What's important is that the West is sending armored fighting vehicles.

The most chilling moment in Gerard Johnstone’s new horror film, “M3GAN,” comes early. Its wildly popular — and immediately viral — trailer seems to give away the entire story, beat by beat, but what it can’t convey is the picture’s delightfully oddball tone, which is poised at a peculiar juncture of slasher horror and self-aware satire. Gemma, dressed in flannels, so you know she’s an antisocial nerd, has developed M3GAN, short for Model 3 Generative ANdroid. As a character, M3GAN is a marvel of design, combining body actor (Amie Donald), voice (Jenna Davis), animatronics, makeup and special effects. (“Humanity kills every day, just to make its existence more bearable,” M3GAN cackles, presumably after doing some online reading about Apple and Foxconn’s Longhua facility.)

☆ Factbox: What is the Bradley Fighting Vehicle?
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 6 (Reuters) - The United States said on Thursday that it will send Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles to Ukraine to bolster Kiev's fight against Russia's invasion. What is a Bradley Fighting Vehicle? The Bradley is a tracked, medium-armored vehicle armed with a 25-mm gun. France has pledged a similar armored vehicle called the AMX-10 RC. Germany will send about 40 Marder infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine before the end of March.

WASHINGTON, Jan 5 (Reuters) - A new U.S. weapons package for Ukraine will include about 50 Bradley Fighting Vehicles, two U.S. officials said on Thursday, with one of the officials saying the package will be worth roughly $2.8 billion. On Wednesday President Joe Biden said that sending Bradley Fighting Vehicles, a U.S. Army staple, to Ukraine was being considered to help fight Russia's invasion. The latest security package for Ukraine is expected to be unveiled on Friday, the officials said. As the war progressed and Ukraine's needs changed, more complex weapons systems, including High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), were shipped to Kiyv. Most recently, the United States pledged to send a Patriot missile system to repel Russian missile and drone attacks.

☆ Biden says Bradley Fighting Vehicles are on the table for Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] U.S. Bradley fighting vehicles that will be deployed in Latvia for NATO's Operation Atlantic Resolve wait for an unload in Garkalne, Latvia February 8, 2017. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins/File PhotoHEBRON, Kentucky, Jan 4 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday said that sending Bradley Fighting Vehicles to Ukraine was being considered to help the that country fight Russia's invasion. The United States has sent about $21.3 billion in security assistance to Kyiv as Europe's biggest land conflict since 1945 grinds on, killing tens of thousands. As the war progressed and Ukraine's needs changed, more complex weapons systems, including High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) and National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS)d, were shipped to Kiyv. Most recently, the United States pledged to send a Patriot missile system to repel Russian missile and drone attacks.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried will enter a plea next week in FTX case, court filings show
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sam Bankman-Fried is scheduled to enter a plea on January 3. Two of his top lieutenants, including Caroline Ellison, already pleaded guilty to a fraud scheme. download the app Email address By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider as well as other partner offers and accept our Terms of Service and Privacy PolicyFTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is expected to enter a plea at a court hearing next week, court filings show. A docket entry on Wednesday designated it as an arraignment hearing, meaning that Bankman-Fried is now scheduled to enter his plea. On Tuesday, the criminal cases of Bankman-Fried, Ellison, and Wang were assigned to US District Judge Lewis Kaplan.

☆ The judge in the FTX fraud case stepped down because her husband works for a firm that advised Sam Bankman-Fried's crypto exchange last year
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ronnie Abrams, the US district judge in the FTX fraud case, stepped down and has been replaced. She said that her husband is a partner at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, which last year advised FTX. Judge Lewis A. Kaplan has taken over the FTX case. Ronnie Abrams, a judge at the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, said in a filing on Friday that she was stepping down. On Tuesday, the case was reassigned to Lewis A. Kaplan, a senior judge at the court, legal filings show.

It’s not that theatrical film exhibition was in a particularly good place before the pandemic. Yet the astounding box-office figures of 2022 tell a different story: Movie theaters didn’t become obsolete. It offered up the best of the moviegoing experience: spectacle, plus quality, plus rewatchability. But best of all, the hunger for the overly familiar was not the only story to be told this year. But if the pandemic-era absence of theatrical releases proved one thing, it’s that people love going to the movies, really love it, and not just to see Marvel movies.

Law firms Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP FollowDec 27 (Reuters) - Sam Bankman-Fried's criminal case over the collapse of his FTX cryptocurrency exchange has been reassigned to a judge recently known for handling defamation lawsuits against former U.S. President Donald Trump and a sexual abuse lawsuit against Britain's Prince Andrew. U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan replaces his colleague Ronnie Abrams, who recused herself on Friday after learning that the law firm Davis Polk & Wardwell, where her husband is a partner, advised FTX in 2021. Trump has sought the dismissal of both lawsuits, including a battery claim. Kaplan also recently oversaw Virginia Giuffre's civil lawsuit accusing Prince Andrew of sexually abusing her when she was 17 at the London home of Ghislaine Maxwell, the now-convicted former associate of late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware and Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Caroline Ellison told a judge she's 'truly sorry' for defrauding FTX customers – and 'knew that it was wrong'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Caroline Ellison told a judge she's "truly sorry" for her role in FTX's collapse, per New York Times. The former CEO of Sam Bankman-Fried's crypto-trading firm Alameda Research told US District Judge Ronnie Abrams in Manhattan federal court "I am truly sorry for what I did. The court unsealed the transcript of her plea hearing on December 22. Ellison told the judge she went along with the decision of her ex-boyfriend Bankman-Fried and others to conceal the close relationship between FTX and Alameda, according to the transcript seen by The Times. She also said she agreed with the decision to divert billions in customer deposits at FTX to pay off loans of Alameda.

☆ Six battleground states will hold the key to the White House in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

AP Photo/Andrew HarnikGeorgia2012 margin: Romney +7.8%2016 margin: Trump +5.1%2020 margin: Biden +0.2%For decades, Republicans could easily depend on the Peach State's electoral votes falling into their column. Two years later, Biden won the state by roughly 12,000 votes over Trump, followed by the dual 2021 runoff victories of Sens. AP Photo/Matt RourkePennsylvania2012 margin: Obama +5.4%2016 margin: Trump +0.7%2020 margin: Biden +1.2%Biden's hometown of Scranton is dear to his heart so Pennsylvania was always going to be a key state for the party in 2024. AP Photo/Andy Manis, FileWisconsin2012 margin: Obama +6.9%2016 margin: Trump +0.8%2020 margin: Biden +0.6%Wisconsin is one of the most politically-divided states in the country. But Trump flipped Wisconsin to the GOP in 2016, the first time it had supported a Republican presidential nominee since 1984.

☆ Caroline Ellison told a judge that FTX executives secretly borrowed billions from Alameda Research, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-24 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Caroline Ellison told a judge that FTX execs secretly borrowed billions from Alameda Research. She said she and Sam Bankman-Fried concealed the credit line from FTX investors and customers. In November, Reuters reported that Bankman-Fried secretly moved $10 billion in FTX customer funds to Alameda Research. Bankman-Fried told Reuters the sum was not "secretly" transferred: "We had confusing internal labeling and misread it." FTX filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on November 11 after it imploded, wiping out customer deposits worth billions.

Ellison and FTX co-founder Gary Wang both pleaded guilty and are cooperating with prosecutors as part of their plea agreements. Roos said Bankman-Fried carried out a "fraud of epic proportions" that led to the loss of billions of dollars of customer and investor funds. Bankman-Fried has acknowledged risk-management failures at FTX but said he does not believe he has criminal liability. A flurry of customer withdrawals in early November amid concerns about commingling of FTX funds with Alameda prompted FTX to declare bankruptcy on Nov. 11. Bankman-Fried was arrested in the capital Nassau on Dec. 12 and arrived in the United States on Wednesday after consenting to extradition.

Companies Ledgerx LLC FollowNEW YORK, Dec 22 (Reuters) - Sam Bankman-Fried was released on a $250 million bond package on Thursday while he awaits trial over the collapse of the FTX crypto exchange, which a U.S. prosecutor called a "fraud of epic proportions." His defense lawyer, Mark Cohen, declined to comment after the hearing in Manhattan federal court. U.S. Magistrate Judge Gabriel Gorenstein set Bankman-Fried's next court date for Jan. 3, 2023, before U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams, who will handle the case. The bond is meant to ensure that if Bankman-Fried flees, the government could confiscate the family's assets - including their Palo Alto home - up to $250 million. Details of their cooperation were kept under wraps until Bankman-Fried left the Bahamas, according to court papers filed on Thursday.

☆ Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX execs received billions in hidden loans, ex-Alameda CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Sam Bankman-Fried and other FTX executives received billions of dollars in secret loans from the crypto mogul’s Alameda Research, the hedge fund’s former chief told a judge when she pleaded guilty to her role in the exchange’s collapse. Ellison and FTX co-founder Gary Wang both pleaded guilty and are cooperating with prosecutors as part of their plea agreements. Bankman-Fried has acknowledged risk-management failures at FTX but said he does not believe he has criminal liability. A flurry of customer withdrawals in early November amid concerns about commingling of FTX funds with Alameda prompted FTX to declare bankruptcy on Nov. 11. Bankman-Fried was arrested in capital Nassau on Dec. 12 and arrived in the United States on Wednesday after consenting to extradition.

Search resuls for: "Abrams"

25 mentions found