Netherlands to Vote on October 29 After Government Falls
The Netherlands will hold a general election on October 29 after far-right leader Geert Wilders pulled his Freedom Party out of the Dutch government earlier this week.
The Minister of the Interior Judith Uitermark posted the date on X Friday.
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Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Algerian Boxer Imane Khelif Skips Tournament Amid Controversy Over Mandatory Sex Testing
Algerian boxer Imane Khelif has reportedly skipped a tournament following World Boxing's new mandatory "gender tests." Khelif found herself at the center of an intense debate over her sex during the 2024 Paris Olympics, which saw her accused of being male by several notable figures. This controversy was reignited after a 2023 chromosome test suggesting an XY karyotype resurfaced. However, Imane Khelif has maintained her female identity, affirming she was born and raised a girl. Khelif, the Algerian boxer embroiled in ongoing sex eligibility debates, has chosen not to participate in an upcoming boxing tournament in the Netherlands following World Boxing's recent directive mandating sex verification tests for all athletes. Although she had originally planned to make her return to the ring at the Hotel Eindhoven tournament, she failed to register before the deadline, which came just days after World Boxing announced the new testing requirements. According to the New York Post, Eindhoven's Mayor, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, voiced strong opposition to World Boxing's move, condemning the mandatory tests as discriminatory. In a letter addressed to the Dutch and International Boxing Federations, he wrote, "As far as we are concerned, all athletes are welcome in Eindhoven. Excluding athletes based on controversial 'gender tests' certainly does not fit in with that." He called for Khelif to be allowed to compete regardless, adding: "We are expressing our disapproval of this decision today and are calling on the organization to admit Imane Khelif after all." Khelif's withdrawal follows renewed scrutiny over her eligibility after alleged sex-test results from the 2023 World Championships resurfaced. According to journalist Alan Abrahamson, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had been warned more than a year ago that Khelif's DNA indicated a "male" profile. 3 Wire Sports recently published a medical document from a chromosome test conducted in March 2023 in New Delhi. The test, which reportedly led to Khelif's disqualification from that year's championship, described her karyotype as "abnormal," showing an XY chromosome pattern, typically associated with males. The document bore the official letterhead of Dr Lal Path Labs, an institution accredited by the College of American Pathologists and certified by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). These alleged findings directly contradict IOC spokesperson Mark Adams, who previously dismissed the test as "ad hoc" and "not legitimate" during a press briefing at the Paris Olympics. At the height of the controversy in 2023, Khelif was disqualified from the Women's World Boxing Championships just before the gold medal bout, after questions emerged about her eligibility to compete in the women's category. The International Boxing Association (IBA) declared that both Khelif and Taiwan's Lin Yu-ting were excluded due to their "failure to meet the eligibility criteria for participating in the women's competition, as set and laid out in the IBA Regulations." According to the IBA, Khelif underwent two gender verification tests; one in 2022 and another in 2023. After her disqualification, she initially appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), but later withdrew the appeal, making the IBA's ruling legally binding. The IBA insisted the decision was the result of a "meticulous review" and was necessary "to uphold the level of fairness and utmost integrity of the competition." Despite the controversy, Khelif went on to represent Algeria at the Paris Olympics and ultimately secured a gold medal in the women's welterweight category. The International Olympic Committee (IOC), at the time, defended her participation. "Everyone competing in the women's category is complying with the competition eligibility rules," IOC spokesperson Mark Adams said during the Games, per Fox News. "They are women in their passports, and it's stated that this is the case that they are female." Throughout the ongoing dispute, Khelif has consistently affirmed her identity as female. She has even taken legal action against those who have criticized her on social media. Before World Boxing's ruling, Khelif had intentions to compete in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, despite former President Donald Trump's executive order banning men from women's sports. Speaking to ITV, Khelif clarified that the policy does not affect her: "I will give you a straightforward answer: the U.S. president issued a decision related to transgender policies in America. I am not transgender. This does not concern me, and it does not intimidate me. That is my response." She added, "For me, I see myself as a girl, just like any other girl. I was born a girl, raised as a girl, and have lived my entire life as one."
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
The top five EU investors in China
The last few months of tariff mayhem have dismantled the transatlantic trade order into a sort of abstract Rorschach test; whatever you see says more about you than whatever the objective reality is. Many have argued that the US' mistreatment of traditional allies such as the EU will push more countries into the arms of China. However, the EU already has its own complicated relationship with Asia's biggest economy, characterised by disputes on electric vehicle (EV) subsidies, anti-dumping probes and a bilateral trade value of €739bn ($844.6bn). So, which are the top five EU investors in China? This embedded content is not available in your region. Germany Germany makes up 57% of EU investment in China, a figure driven by auto-related FDI. In February 2024, this investment hit a record high of €11.9bn, according to the Bundesbank. The German Government has expressed concerns about this level of investment as Europe tries to decrease its reliance on China. Germany's new Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, said their relationship is being 'shaped by systematic rivalry and power politics'. Merz added that while China is still an important economic partner, 'we will continue to reduce one-sided dependencies'. France While France comes after Germany, it invested in less than half the projects that Germany did during this period. According to GlobalData's FDI database, French investments in China during this period were mostly in software and IT services, electronics, communications and media. In October 2024, China imposed temporary tariffs on cognac of EU origin, which has mostly affected French producers. The probe started shortly after the EU imposed tariffs of up to 45% on Chinese EV imports. Netherlands Most of the Netherlands' investments in China were in software and IT services, electronics, and communications and media. ASML, the Dutch multinational producing photolithography machines, announced multiple investments in China during this period. In March, ASML revealed plans to open a 'reuse and repair' centre in Beijing. While Chinese demand for the Dutch company's machines has remained strong, mounting US restrictions on advanced manufacturing tools for semiconductor chips could affect sales. Denmark China is Denmark's fourth-largest trading partner. In 2024, bilateral trade exceeded $15.66bn (DKr102.38bn), according to Chinese Ambassador to Denmark Wang Xuefeng. Danish investments in China have mainly been in the renewable energy sector, with major companies such as Ørsted and Vestas having expanded their operations in China. Spain Spain's Government has not been afraid to indulge Washington, DC's fears as it has markedly strengthened ties with China in the face of US tariffs. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was the first to visit China after the US started its tariff project. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned against this approach, saying cosying up to China as opposed to the US would be a 'losing bet for the Europeans' and was like 'cutting your own throat'. Find company profiles, industry spotlights, theme breakdowns and more on GlobalData's FDI Database. "The top five EU investors in China" was originally created and published by Investment Monitor, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
CNBC
9 hours ago
- CNBC
This uranium company wants to break the grip that foreign state corporations have on U.S. nuclear fuel
President Donald Trump's push to dramatically increase nuclear power in the U.S. will require a tremendous amount of fuel, but the country remains heavily dependent on foreign state-owned companies for its supplies, the CEO of the only publicly traded uranium enricher in the world told CNBC. "There's barely enough Western enrichment, if at all, to satisfy existing operating plants," Centrus Energy CEO Amir Vexler said in an interview. "If the nuclear industry is to add all this generation capacity, there will have to be a tremendous amount of enrichment capacity that's added." Trump issued a series of executive orders on nuclear power last month that set a target for the U.S. to quadruple the sector's capacity to 400 gigawatts by 2050. Nuclear energy is one of the few issues in deeply polarized Washington these days that enjoys some level of bipartisan support. Trump's push expands on former President Joe Biden's goal to triple nuclear power by midcentury. Most nuclear plants worldwide use low-enriched uranium, or LEU. The U.S. relied on foreign countries for around 70% of the fuel for its reactors in 2023, according to data from the Energy Information Administration. About 27% of U.S. fuel purchases came from Russia that year, one of the principle geopolitical foes of the U.S. But Russian uranium will be forced out of the U.S. supply chain by 2028 at the latest, after Biden signed legislation in 2024 to ban imports over Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The U.S. faces a looming nuclear fuel supply gap due to the loss of Russian uranium. Western enrichment capacity, meanwhile, is dominated by two players that are not American owned. They are France's Orano and a British-Dutch-German consortium called Urenco, according to the World Nuclear Association. The European enrichers are reliable partners and have done a good job supporting the market, Vexler told CNBC. But trade tensions threaten to disrupt global supply chains, he said on the Centrus first-quarter earnings call. "We don't have any domestic fuel cycle capacity, almost at all," Vexler told CNBC, referring to American-owned companies. "We don't mine anything, we don't convert anything. We don't enrich anything. We rely on others. And others are all state-owned enterprises, maybe with a few minor exceptions." The only commercial enrichment facility operating in the U.S. is owned by Urenco, the European consortium. It is located in Eunice, New Mexico. Centrus wants to break the stranglehold that state-owned corporations have over the U.S. nuclear fuel supply chain. "The circumstances in the market are such that we believe and we're staking everything we have on the fact that the market needs another enricher," Vexler said. "It needs competition." Trump directed federal agencies on May 23 to develop a plan to expand uranium enrichment capabilities in the U.S. to meet the needs of the civilian and defense sectors. The president's order is sparse on concrete details about how domestic enrichment will be stood up in the U.S. But Centrus' stock has gained 46% as of Thursday's close since Trump's announcement as Wall Street sees the company playing a key role in the effort. The company's shares have risen more than 7% this week as Meta's deal to buy nuclear power from Constellation Energy has reinforced the view that demand is increasing as the tech sector hunts for electricity for its data centers. Centrus is one of just two companies that are licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to produce low-enriched uranium in the U.S., the other being Urenco. Bethesda, Maryland-based Centrus is also the only company in the U.S. that has a license to produce a type of fuel that some next-generation nuclear plant designs, such as small modular reactors, are planning to use. The U.S. wasn't always dependent on foreign countries. It was the first country to enrich uranium for the commercial market and was a dominant player in the market through the 1980s. The federal government owned and operated the nation's enrichment facilities during that period. The U.S. sold its enrichment business through a company called the United States Enrichment Corp. in a public offering in 1998. USEC went bankrupt in 2014 as nuclear plants struggled to compete against cheap natural gas and support for the industry declined in the wake of the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan. Centrus emerged from the reorganization of USEC later that year and is now profitable. "We were just not able to compete with other government, state-owned competitors," said Vexler, who took over the helm at Centrus in 2024. When times got tough for the industry, national governments in Europe and Russia would not allow their state-owned enrichers to fail, he said. Centrus operates an enrichment plant in Piketon, Ohio, about 95 miles east of Cincinnati that could one day supply a major portion of U.S. nuclear fuel needs. The Ohio facility has a footprint the size of the Pentagon and could produce enriched uranium equivalent to about 25% of the total purchased by U.S. power plants in 2023, according to Centrus. This is nearly equivalent to the amount of enriched uranium imported from Russia that year. "If that is not sufficient, if domestic requirements, national security requirements, export requirements exceed that, then obviously we have the capability to expand as well," Vexler said. The Ohio plant has not launched commercial operations yet. It is currently producing a small amount of the fuel that the developers of advanced reactor designs are banking on, called high-assay low-enriched uranium, or HALEU. The Department of Energy buys the fuel that Centrus produces. Centrus' main business right now is importing LEU for U.S. nuclear plants with contracts that run through 2040. It has a waiver to import Russian LEU through 2025 and has applied for waivers through 2027. Under U.S. law, exceptions that allow Russian imports will cease by 2028. Centrus plans to transition away from its trading business as it stands up its domestic enrichment capacity. The vast majority of the enriched uranium produced in Ohio will be sold on the commercial market and potentially for export, Vexler said. "I would certainly aim for us to not only backfill sort of the vacancy that the Russians are creating, but I also hope that we're going to gain market share, both in the LEU and in the HALEU market," Vexler said. But this will require some level of government support given the state-owned competition, he said. Congress has passed $3.4 billion to support domestic enrichment and reduce U.S. dependence particularly on Russia. Centrus is one of several companies competing for the funding. "We've always said that it has to be a public-private partnership," Vexler said. "We've been raising our own funds. We've been raising our own financing. We will contribute significantly to this, but we have to have government support." "There is a path here where we could have a prosperous, commercially competitive American industry," he said.
