Author: James Ramos

At Rockaway Beach on a Summer Friday, it was one of those nights you could bottle up the weather. Frisbees spun, kites took flight, the boardwalk was packed and the beach was crowded. The ocean, except for a few brave surfers, was empty. An FDNY drone was spotted earlier Friday afternoon. “To hear that there, and they weren’t letting anyone in – I thought that was great,” said Karina Santos. “It was nice that they closed everything first and then checked everything out and they cleared it,” added Ronnie Mani. Meanwhile, the NYPD announced Friday along with the FDNY that…

French in-space transportation company Exotrail is launching two U.S.-based subsidiaries, one focused specifically on serving U.S. government and defense customers, the company said Monday. Tyler Browder, co-founder and former head of satellite software developer Kubos, was installed to lead the new Exotrail U.S., Inc. He joined Exotrail as a senior officer in February, just after the company announced it had closed a $58 million Series B. At the time, Exotrail expressed its intent to expand its footprint in the United States. Exotrail also hired Brian Holt as the director of U.S. government business development and partnerships. Holt had previously worked…

China-based hackers breached the email account of US Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns as part of a recent targeted intelligence-gathering campaign, three US officials familiar with the matter told CNN. The hackers also accessed the email account of Daniel Kritenbrink, the assistant secretary of State for East Asia, who recently traveled with Secretary of State Antony Blinken to China, the people said. The news, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, adds to the fallout for the US of the alleged Chinese hack first revealed last week. The hackers also infiltrated the emails of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, CNN previously…

U.S. Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro says the major multination military training exercise Talisman Sabre in Australia sends a message to China that America’s allies are cooperating to defend their security and democratic values. Talisman Sabre began in 2005 as a biennial joint exercise between the United States and Australia but has expanded this year to 13 nations and more than 30,000 military personnel. Del Toro and his Australian counterpart welcomed ever-closer closer bilateral military ties as they launched the exercise at a Sydney naval base on Friday. Both were upbeat about progress on the so-called AUKUS deal under which…

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) says it aims to lower food prices and increase competition among agricultural businesses. The department plans to work with 31 states and the District of Colombia to target unfair price-setting activities. It also plans to act against anticompetitive behavior in the food and agriculture sectors. On Wednesday, the USDA said it would work with a group of attorneys from both political parties. It aims to enforce laws on price fixing and the consolidation of businesses. The government says farmers have been unhappy about low prices for their products and unfair contracts with the biggest…

BELFAST IT group Kainos has completed its latest acquisition in the United States. The software company has bought Atlanta-based RapidIT-Cloudbera. The company, which operates within the Workday market, employs 101 people between the US and India. Workday is a suite of office management software, and is one of the fastest growing areas of the Kainos business. The London-listed tech group recently announced its Workday Services business grew by 49 per cent in the latest financial year, while its Workday Products division grew by 40 per cent. Established in 2017, RapidIT-Cloudbera is the creator of Genie, a Workday-focused automated testing product,…

Recently the Chinese military has engaged in repeated provocations against United States Naval vessels and aircraft. In one incident, on March 3, the US Navy guided-missile destroyer Chung-Hoon and a frigate belonging to the Canadian Navy were transiting the Taiwan Strait. A Navy destroyer belonging to China overtook them and crossed in front of the US destroyer at a distance of only about 140 meters. The US destroyer was forced to immediately reduce speed in order to avoid a collision. The US Indo-Pacific Command issued a statement criticizing the Chinese Navy for violating the “maritime ‘Rules of the Road’ of safe passage in international waters.” China’s Aggressive Response One wrong move…

Millions of people in Texas are bracing for extreme temperatures over the weekend just days after a tornado killed three people in the state. Temperatures have been climbing since Thursday, when a major storm system swept the southern US, also causing deaths in Florida and Mississippi. Power is out for 400,000 customers in the South as of Friday evening. Officials warn that the brutal heat will strain power grids as residents run their air conditioners. The extreme temperatures come as the US prepares to celebrate the Juneteenth holiday on Monday, a federal holiday. The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a…

MOSCOW — Russia’s Interior Ministry on Monday issued an arrest warrant for Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., following his comments related to the fighting in Ukraine. In an edited video of his meeting Friday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that was released by Zelenskyy’s office, Graham said “the Russians are dying” and described the U.S. military assistance to the country as “the best money we’ve ever spent.” While Graham appeared to have made the remarks in different parts of the conversation, the short video by Ukraine’s presidential office put them next to each other, causing outrage in Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman…

BEIJING — Fewer than 6% of U.S. flights to and from mainland China that existed in 2019 have resumed, according to a Nomura report. In contrast, flights between mainland China and Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Italy are nearly back to pre-pandemic frequency or more, the report showed, citing data as of May 22 from Variflight. “We think geopolitical factors in China’s outbound tourism revival … are clearly at play here,” Nomura’s Chief China Economist Ting Lu and a team said in the report Monday. In March, China brokered the restoration of diplomatic ties between Middle East rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran.…