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NZ Herald
3 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Republicans are stopping votes on legislation over fear Democrats will bring in Epstein amendments
The Jeffrey Epstein case has President Donald Trump and Republican leaders in Congress under pressure from Democrats and the Maga base. Photo / Doug Mills, the New York Times The House has largely come to a halt as Republican leaders struggle to assuage an irate group of lawmakers who are demanding that the Justice Department release files related to deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The House will adjourn tomorrow, a day earlier than expected, for its month-long recess from
RNZ News
4 hours ago
- RNZ News
A never-ending visa queue for refugees
A 7.7-magnitude quake flattened buildings across Myanmar on March 28, killing more than 3,400 people, making thousands more homeless, and worsening an already complex humanitarian situation amid civil war. Photo: SAI AUNG MAIN / AFP When Dawt Tha Thang arrived in New Zealand in 2010, she was with her husband and five of her children. Within weeks, she gave birth to her youngest. But her eldest daughter stayed behind in Myanmar. She had just married and was pregnant. The Thangs are Christian Chins and as a minority, have faced persecution - it is how they became refugees - but over the past several years things have become even more dangerous in Myanmar. First, in 2021 there was a military coup and the country descended into civil war. Then, this March, there was an earthquake that killed thousands. "Myanmar as a whole is a pretty awful situation, with the civil war and the earthquake and forced conscription, but this is a family that ... also comes from a persecuted minority. They have been shaken down in [the capital city] Yangon, ie the army comes round and demands money or they will be sent to jail. They're moving every second or third night to stay away from the army," says Caroline Forsyth, who is friends with the family and speaks on their behalf to The Detail. Under the Refugee Family Support Category (RFSC), the Thangs can apply to bring their daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren here to join them. And the last time applications opened, they did. That was in 2017. They have been closed since then. Right now, the queue is 4190 people long, with only a few applicants coming off that list every year. But the scale of the problem is much bigger, because it does not represent all the people who have not even had a chance to apply. In today's episode of The Detail, Jay Marlowe - professor of social work at Auckland University and co-author with the Red Cross of a report on the RFSC - explains how the category works - and does not. "It's not our position that the RFSC is not working or is absolutely broken... for me fundamentally it's about ensuring that we protect what exists but also to recognise that it is under need of reform," he says. "It's not irreparably broken, but it does need reform." Under the RFSC there are two tiers. Tier One is for people who have come here as refugees who have no other adult family in the country, and Tier Two is for people who do have adult family - like the Thangs, who are a married couple and now have adult children - but have other adult family who they would like to reunite with as well. Tier One is prioritised, because people applying in that category do not have any support here. That category remains open for applications, but Tier Two has only opened for applications twice. The first time was in 2012, and the second was in 2017. Both times, it was only for a few days, and Forsyth and Marlowe say the system was inundated with applications. There are only 600 places a year open for the RFSC, and because Tier One is always open and those applications are prioritised, very few Tier Two applicants get through. This leaves people like the Thangs in a holding pattern, unsure of when - if ever - they will be able to reunite with their families. In their case, their daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren are hungry, they have lost family members to military violence, and the children can not go to school. They have attempted to escape to Thailand, where they'd be able to register as refugees, but haven't been able to. Last month, Labour MP Phil Twyford asked Associate Immigration Minister Casey Costello and General Manager, Refugee and Migrant Service Fiona Whiteridge, for an update on progress. Whiteridge said that "in order to clear that tier two queue, and it obviously is all dependent on how many more people applying to tier one, it would take us between eight to 10 years". Marlowe says there is clear research that reuniting people with their families has a broad range of benefits and the government should think about this category not just in terms of what it costs, but also what it might save in the long term. "Not only does it make sense to reunite families ... but it might even make dollars and cents. "Family reunification is often one of the most important, if not the most important, topic that people want to address." Check out how to listen to and follow The Detail here . You can also stay up-to-date by liking us on Facebook or following us on Twitter .
NZ Herald
18 hours ago
- NZ Herald
With an uncertain future weapons supply from other countries, Ukraine shifts to building its own
United States President Donald Trump's inconsistent support for Ukraine has called into question the continued backing of the US, Kyiv's biggest arms supplier. The Trump Administration recently paused some arms transfers but then reversed course, agreeing to sell weapons to European allies, which will then give them to Ukraine. But even with greater certainty about the flow of Western weapons, it still does not match what Ukraine needs to fend off the Russian invasion. That reality has produced a fundamental shift in Ukraine's appeals to its Western allies. Rather than pleading primarily for arms, as it did early in the war, Ukraine is increasingly asking for the money to build its own weapons. The effort involves an array of both private and government-owned firms involved in making vehicles, engines, electronics, weapons, and ammunition. At the start of the war in 2022, Ukraine relied mostly on artillery, shells, and machine guns donated by Western partners. Now, it produces about 40% of the weapons used at the front, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and it is looking to increase that amount sharply. The most striking example of this growing self-reliance is the use of drones, now omnipresent on the battlefield and produced almost entirely in Ukraine. 'This does not bring peace of mind, but it does provide greater moral confidence that we will not be left empty-handed,' Zelenskyy said in February of Ukraine's booming defence industry. To further increase production, Ukraine needs more money, which it sorely lacks. Olena Bilousova, a defence industry expert at the Kyiv School of Economics, said Ukraine had the industrial capacity to produce US$35 billion ($58.6b) worth of military equipment annually, but was producing only up to about US$15b, and was unable to afford more. 'The funding issue is a bottleneck for our defence industry,' Bilousova said in an interview. An employee works on a vehicle at a Ukrainian Armour factory in central Ukraine. Photo / Brendan Hoffman, the New York Times Growing self-reliance - About 40% of weapons used at the front are made in Ukraine. - The drones it uses are produced almost entirely in Ukraine. - Ukraine produces more artillery systems each month than all European countries combined. - It is said to be fully self-reliant for both mortar launchers and shells. Employees work on building mortar launchers at a Ukrainian Armour factory in central Ukraine. Photo / Brendan Hoffman, the New York Times Adding to the pressure to produce more weapons is Russia's own war machinery, which has expanded greatly during the war. Russia's defence budget this year is at least US$150b, about three times as large as Ukraine's. Russia now produces three times as much ammunition in three months as all of Nato does in a year, Mark Rutte, the alliance's secretary-general, said in a recent interview. The imbalance in arms production has given Russia an overwhelming firepower advantage on the battlefield, even in domains such as drones that Ukraine once dominated. Ukrainian soldiers defending the embattled city of Kostiantynivka in the east say Russian attack drones monitor the battlefield day and night, targeting anything that moves. Graffiti left on the bombed-out train station in Kostiantynivka tells the mood. Partly erased where the station wall was blown apart, the words, in English, can still be made out: 'Not asking too much. We just need artillery shells and aviation. Rest we do ourselves.' Unable to match enemy fire, Ukraine is forced to adapt. Using feedback from soldiers on the ground, Ukrainian Armour has started producing vehicles designed specifically to evade drones on the battlefield, including a light buggy capable of racing up to 145km/h to outrun drones. Its construction is bare-bones: an open-topped metal frame, suspension, two seats — and no speedometer. 'Why would you need one?' Belbas said with a smile, as he toured the factory. The New York Times agreed not to disclose the factory's precise location because Russia routinely targets weapons-production sites in Ukraine. Ukrainian Armour also makes a large, unmanned carrier that shows the growing robotisation of the battlefield. It is, in effect, a drone mother ship, designed to transport smaller remote-controlled vehicles to the front. The smaller drones, in turn, deliver food and ammunition to combat positions, while the carrier serves as a relay station for signal transmission. Belbas said robotic vehicles were designed to save the lives of Ukraine's limited number of soldiers, sparing them from risky missions such as resupplying troops at the front. 'Also, it's about money,' he acknowledged. The Ukrainian government pays 15 million hryvnia (about US$360,000) in compensation to the family of each soldier who is killed. Producing a vehicle like this is 'five times cheaper,' Belbas said. The Novator, an armoured vehicle manufactured by Ukrainian Armour. Photo / Brendan Hoffman, the New York Times These innovations make up only a small share of the company's output. Most of its production remains focused on battlefield staples such as mortars — weapons that are reliable in all weather conditions, unlike drones. 'The mortars are like the undying classic weapons,' Belbas said as he stepped into a warehouse lined with mortars mounted on two-wheeled chassis. Last year, the company produced about 1000 mortars, roughly double the previous year's output. Early in the war, Ukrainian troops used Caesar self-propelled howitzers — big cannons mounted on heavy trucks — to pound Russian positions. Now, they have largely turned to a homegrown alternative, the Bohdana, producing nearly 20 units a month, Ukrainian officials say. Bilousova, the defence industry expert, said Ukraine now produces more artillery systems each month than all European countries combined. As for mortars, Belbas estimated that Ukraine has been fully self-reliant for both launchers and shells since last year. It is a turnaround from the start of the war, when nearly all mortar shells were imported. Kyiv has also initiated plans to develop more advanced weapons such as air-defence systems — the type of munitions that were the subject of the Trump Administration's recent flip-flop. (Trump said he did not know who had paused the weapons delivery.) These sophisticated systems are expensive to develop and build, and Kyiv cannot afford to do so on its own. Belbas said contracts with the Ukrainian Defence Ministry to produce more mortars, a far more basic weapon, went unfulfilled because of a lack of funding. To broaden its options, Kyiv recently began a new initiative, inviting its allies to host production facilities within their borders for Ukrainian weapons-makers. Under this model, Ukraine would provide the expertise, while Western partners would provide money and production sites out of reach of Russian strikes. Denmark was the first country to officially endorse the plan, in early July, and Zelenskyy said that 'more such agreements will follow'. Facing the twin threats of Russian expansionism and a diminished US commitment to Nato, Europe is also ramping up military spending and weapons production. Ukrainian officials hope that will mean leaning on Ukraine's hard-won expertise to help rearm the continent. 'Ukraine needs investment. You need skills, you need technology,' Zelenskyy told Western allies this month in Rome. 'And everything we are building now to protect Ukraine will also help protect you.' This article originally appeared in The New York Times. Written by: Constant Méheut Photographs by: Brendan Hoffman ©2025 THE NEW YORK TIMES
