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Time of India
28-07-2025
- Time of India
UAE: Sharjah eyes UNESCO recognition for two more heritage sites after Jebel Faya inscription
The emirate prepares to nominate Wadi Al Helo and Mleiha for global recognition/ Image: WAM TL;DR Sharjah's Mleiha and Wadi Al Helo sites are next in line for UNESCO recognition. Jebel Faya 's inscription boosted Sharjah's cultural tourism and scientific status. Ongoing efforts involve local authorities and strict conservation plans to protect heritage. Sharjah recently celebrated a major milestone when the Jebel Faya archaeological site earned its place on UNESCO's World Heritage List. This achievement brought international recognition to the emirate as a key site in human history. But the work doesn't stop there. The Sharjah Antiquities Authority is now focused on securing UNESCO status for two other significant locations: Wadi Al Helo in the Eastern Region and the Mleiha Archaeological Site in the Central Region. Both sites are already on UNESCO's Tentative List, marking the first step toward full recognition. Issa Yousif, Director-General of the Sharjah Antiquities Authority, shared these plans in an interview with the Emirates News Agency (WAM). He emphasized that the Jebel Faya nomination received strong support from 13 out of 21 World Heritage Committee countries, reflecting the site's global scientific and cultural importance. This success not only elevates Sharjah's profile internationally but also opens new doors for cultural tourism and job creation in the area. What Makes These Sites Important? Jebel Faya: Known as the earliest desert site settled by humans around 200,000 years ago, it has a rich history uncovered since 2003 by German-led archaeological missions. The site's geology includes rare ophiolite rocks, pieces of the Earth's mantle exposed on the surface, making it a world-class site for scientific study. Mleiha Archaeological Site: Located in central Sharjah, Mleiha has significant archaeological remains from various historical periods. It's a cultural hub that offers educational tours and promotes heritage awareness. Wadi Al Helo: Situated in the eastern part of Sharjah, this site holds ancient settlements and artifacts that add depth to the region's prehistoric narrative. How Is Sharjah Protecting These Treasures? Conservation is a key part of UNESCO's requirements, and Sharjah is taking this seriously. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like How Smart Are You Really? This Test Will Surprise You Try Now Undo Kholoud Al-Houli Al-Suwaidi, Director of Tangible Cultural Heritage at the Antiquities Authority, told WAM, a local media outlet, that the management plan for Jebel Faya was fully ready before its nomination. The site is open for visitors with guided tours from the Mleiha Archaeological Centre. To protect the environment, vehicle routes change every two weeks to reduce the impact on the area. Annual conservation reports and five-year monitoring plans are submitted to UNESCO to ensure these sites remain protected for future generations. This approach combines decades of research with hands-on care. Collaboration Is Key The success of Sharjah's heritage projects depends on cooperation between several local bodies: Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq), which manages the Mleiha Archaeological Centre. Environment and Protected Areas Authority, which oversees Jebel Buhais Geological Park. Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority, which promotes cultural tourism. Legal and Planning Departments, which enforce protection laws and zoning regulations. According to WAM, both officials stressed that this achievement is safeguarded by an integrated legal framework issued by His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, who provided unlimited support for the project. The Legal Department and the Department of Planning and Survey further backed the accomplishment by issuing development regulations for the protected zone. Including, Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi who provided essential support and guidance throughout the process. Four Sharjah Sites Listed on UNESCO Tentative List in 2023 In 2023, Sharjah added four new sites to UNESCO's Tentative List, highlighting the deep history of the Emirates and its role in human settlement over thousands of years. These sites are: Pre-Islamic Mleiha, located in Central Sharjah Four locations with significant rock art Wadi Al Helo, known for its ancient copper mining evidence Faya Area in Central Sharjah The sites were added in February 2023 after thorough studies by academic experts and specialists. Out of these, the Faya site gained official inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage List on July 11, 2025 Why It Matters Sharjah's efforts highlight the region's rich prehistoric past and its role in early human migration. These sites help us understand human history and promote cultural tourism in a way that respects the environment and local communities. For residents and visitors, it means access to world-class heritage sites that are both educational and inspiring.
Mint
10-07-2025
- Automotive
- Mint
How Volkswagen's electric bus went from American flagship to flop
As psychedelic rock blared, Thomas Schäfer hopped onto a Huntington Beach, Calif., stage flanked by surfboards two years ago to announce the rebirth of an automotive icon, the Volkswagen bus. The German auto giant was bringing back the bus as an electric vehicle, albeit one with a boxy design and two-tone paint job reminiscent of the original. The reboot was more than two decades in the making, and the company said the vehicle would soon be available in the U.S. 'Finally, finally," said Schäfer, a top VW executive, as the bus they called the rolled across the stage to wolf whistles from the crowd. The reception since has been considerably less enthusiastic. Volkswagen had hoped to ride a wave of nostalgia for a much-loved symbol of 1960s hippie counterculture as a way to carve out a larger chunk of the lucrative U.S. auto market—a feat that has defied the world's second-largest carmaker for half a century. Instead, the vehicle is shaping up to be yet another American misadventure for the company, reaching dealers years late, over budget and just in time for a trade war. Built in Germany, the model was delivered to its first U.S. customer days after the election of Donald Trump, who would go on to introduce a 25% tariff on imported cars and roll back government support for EVs. With a battery range of less than 250 miles per charge, the doesn't compare favorably with other new EVs. The German-led design also failed to account for some uniquely American tastes: It often needs to be fitted with extra cupholders at U.S. ports. Capping the model's troubles, all the vehicles shipped to the U.S. were recalled in April because the third-row seats were too broad, allowing three passengers to squeeze into a space with only two seat belts. Sales were suspended for two months while Volkswagen fit plastic parts to narrow the row, which meant the company only delivered 564 in the three months before the end of June. Even before the recall, the luxury sticker price of the ID. Buzz, which starts at about $60,000, kept a brake on sales as consumers pivoted to more affordable wheels. In the U.S., where the vehicle became available toward the end of last year, just over 3,000 had been shipped to dealers by the end of March. While a slowdown in EV sales and President Trump's tariffs have caught other automakers off guard, the debacle highlights institutional problems, such as internal divisions and sluggish, Europe-centric product development, that have dogged Volkswagen for years. Senior Volkswagen executive Thomas Schäfer at the launch for the in Huntington Beach, Calif., in June 2023. 'Could have been there earlier? Probably, yes," Kjell Gruner, president of Volkswagen Group of America, told reporters earlier this year. A spokesman for the in Germany said it was a 'halo" product designed to bring drivers to showrooms rather than sell in great numbers. He said it only arrived in the U.S. last year, following a 2022 launch in Europe, because Volkswagen's American business decided that a three-row extended version that only came later was the best fit for the U.S. market. Many hardcore VW fans have been disappointed by the rollout. In Dallas, Texas, European car enthusiast and parts supplier Autrey McVicker was 'dead set on getting the Buzz" until his dealer told him the pomelo yellow and white version he had his eye on would cost $72,000, far more than he had expected. 'I just couldn't justify such a high expense for an EV that would most likely lose 50% of its value the first year," he said. McVicker is still waiting for his He hopes to get one 'once they start popping up on the used market for what they are actually worth." The original bus sold in the millions, embodying Volkswagen's name, which means 'the people's car" in German. In the 1960s, the bus and the Beetle helped Volkswagen enjoy rapid growth. U.S. sales peaked at almost 570,000 in 1970, more than a third of the brand's global total. At the time, the van was priced at the equivalent of around $20,000, less expensive than most cars. Many of them festooned with peace signs and flowers, and capable of moving large groups around the country cheaply, the bus was a favorite of surfers, young families and hippies. (When Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia died in 1995, Volkswagen ran an ad with a tear falling from one headlight.) It spawned 'van life" several generations before the term was embraced by social-media influencers. But as the dollar fell against the deutschmark and Japanese auto companies expanded to the U.S., Volkswagen lost its edge. By 1993, Volkswagen sales in the U.S. had declined to a low of less than 50,000. A few years later, the New Beetle helped to revive the brand by channeling its 1960s heritage, and Volkswagen began plotting a similar effort for the bus. A first attempt was shown at the 2001 Detroit auto show. The concept was a hit and was cleared for series production, but following a management change, the new bus was canceled for fear it would be too niche and costly. Instead the company launched a rebadged Chrysler minivan, the VW Routan, that flopped. It took the greatest scandal in Volkswagen's history for the company to get serious about reviving the bus. In January 2016, less than four months after the company admitted to cheating on emissions tests, Volkswagen executive Herbert Diess delivered the keynote address at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Diess started with an apology to the millions of customers with affected vehicles, then pledged to create 'a different and better company. A new Volkswagen." 'Do you remember this iconic machine?" asked Diess, as a photo of a VW bus with a surfboard on the roof appeared on screen behind him. 'Ladies and gentlemen, the Volkswagen Budd-e." Diess was one of a growing group of auto executives who believed the industry was on the cusp of an electric revolution, and was a fan of Elon Musk. The Tesla CEO was preparing to launch the company's first mass market vehicle, the Model 3 sedan, which he said would cost $35,000. Nearly 200,000 people reserved a Tesla on the first day orders opened, and Diess used the new competition as a motivating tool to push Volkswagen to move faster. Volkswagen had toyed with the idea of bringing out an electric version of the more aerodynamic Beetle, according to former executives. But the company settled on electrifying the bus, partly because Americans were turning away from small cars in ever larger numbers. A Volkswagen bus in Greenwich Village, circa 1965. Diess saw the Volkswagen people carrier as a way to recapture what made the company popular in 1960s America: fun, affordable vehicles. Making them electric would help dispel the stench of its emissions scandal. The Budd-e concept offered a 'journey to the year 2019," Diess said. By mid-2017, when in Pebble Beach he announced regular production of the he was promising the first deliveries in 2022. It didn't reach America until 2024, after he had left the company. In his then role as head of the Volkswagen brand, Diess was in charge of the group's pivot to becoming an electric-car maker. Volkswagen owns luxury automakers Audi and Porsche in a structure that encourages competition between rival teams to develop new technologies, such as those feeding into the novel approach to electric vehicles that spawned the The belief was that friendly competition would yield a better product, but it had the effect of slowing down decision-making on the according to a former executive at Volkswagen's North American arm. The competition also drove up costs as the departments duplicated efforts, the person said. Volkswagen, which developed the alongside other EVs such as the ID.4, later vied with the company's separate commercial-vehicle arm for the right to produce it. Elon Musk and Herbert Diess with the Volkswagen Diess had considered making the vehicle in the U.S., where Volkswagen opened a factory in Chattanooga in 2011. As a compromise to get the over the line, Diess gave the vehicle to the commercial-vehicle business, which had produced the original bus and made its successor vehicles for sale across Europe. Chattanooga got to produce the more mainstream ID.4 SUV instead, while the commercial business gave up a project to electrify an existing van. But the commercial-vehicle engineers had less expertise on electric-vehicle technology and building automobiles for sale in the U.S. 'Commercial-vehicle engineers had to learn a lot of things, and the other engineers said, 'We're too busy, you figure it out yourself,'" the former Volkswagen North America executive said. 'That's why it took so damn long." The commercial-vehicle business is also based at a plant in Hanover that is among the company's most expensive. The labor cost of producing a vehicle in Germany was roughly $3,307 last year, compared with $1,341 in the U.S., according to a recent report by consultants at Oliver Wyman. Hundreds of millions of euros were also spent on upgrading the plant to accommodate production of an EV on an all-new platform. The decision to make the vehicle in Hanover was at least partially due to Volkswagen's complicated political situation. Hanover is the capital of Lower Saxony, the German region that owns 20% of the company's voting shares and has two seats on its board. 'Herbert's plans to take the bus out of Hanover and put it in another country didn't go down well with Lower Saxony," recalls one executive who was involved in the project. The Volkswagen spokesman said the factories run by the commercial-vehicle business were the only ones with the equipment to build a vehicle with side panels such as the Supply shortages pushed up battery costs during the pandemic, which was especially impactful for the given the large battery required to move a bus. High costs meant the plusher interior features initially envisaged, such as a soft dashboard and door panels, were gradually replaced with cheaper plastics as the project progressed. The styling of the original bus that made it so endearing turned out to translate poorly in the EV age. When Diess showed an prototype in 2017, he promised EVs that would be 'affordable for millions, not just to millionaires." The company prepared its Hanover factory to produce up to 130,000 units a year, and executives hinted that they could in time manufacture it in the U.S. as well. Only around 30,000 units were sold last year, hurt in Europe by key markets including Germany and Sweden rolling back EV subsidies. The original VW bus had its engine at the rear, giving it an unusually flat front and poor aerodynamics. For an EV, minimizing weight and air drag is key to maximizing range per unit of expensive battery power. An at a Volkswagen plant in Hanover, Germany, in 2022. Volkswagen's designers made the front of the much more sloping than that of the original bus, but they still had to use an outsize battery to report an anemic range of 234 miles at full charge. When the finally hit U.S. dealerships in October, the $60,000 price tag was criticized as being higher than many competitors' vehicles, which could also travel farther on a single battery charge. 'Anyone who has been around VW thinks the price point is high," said Fred Emich IV, a Volkswagen and Kia dealer. Designing and building cars in Germany for the U.S. comes with problems beyond just high costs. After less than a year on the U.S. market, the has already been subject to two recall notices, both for glaring design oversights. In April, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration warned that the vehicle showed the international brake-warning sign in amber rather than the word 'brake" in red capital letters, which is the requirement in the U.S. A few weeks later, the body said the third-row seat was too wide because it could accommodate three people even though it only had two seat belts. The company is fitting plastic parts to cover the sides of the seats in the roughly 5,600 vehicles affected. Volkswagen also appeared to miss the biggest appeal of the to American car buyers: its paint job. The top-of-the-line comes in a two-tone paint job with names like Cabana Blue and Pomelo Yellow, reminiscent of the vintage models often found in psychedelic hues. The base model is only offered in pedestrian white, gray or black. To help juice sales of those models, Volkswagen started directing dealers to wrap the cheaper versions with colored vinyl. The snafus are emblematic of Volkswagen's struggles to bring products designed for European tastes or regulatory standards to the U.S. Used to catering to sedan-loving Europeans, the company was slow to introduce SUVs as Americans started to embrace them in the 2000s. The emissions scandal itself was rooted in an effort to adapt a European technology for tighter U.S. nitrogen-oxide emissions standards, at minimal cost. 'The problem with all of the Volkswagen brands has always been that they've just been a bit too Europe-centric," said Citigroup analyst Harald Hendrikse. The company has made clear it wants to change that. At Volkswagen's annual general meeting in May, Chief Executive Officer Oliver Blume said it was 'formulating a vision for North America," where it wants to grow 'with products that are consistently geared to the expectations of American customers." But Blume didn't evoke the Instead he talked about Scout, the heritage SUV brand for which the company is building a $2 billion new factory in South Carolina. Write to Sean McLain at and Stephen Wilmot at
Hindustan Times
10-07-2025
- Automotive
- Hindustan Times
How Volkswagen's Electric Bus Went From American Flagship to Flop
As psychedelic rock blared, Thomas Schäfer hopped onto a Huntington Beach, Calif., stage flanked by surfboards two years ago to announce the rebirth of an automotive icon, the Volkswagen bus. The German auto giant was bringing back the bus as an electric vehicle, albeit one with a boxy design and two-tone paint job reminiscent of the original. The reboot was more than two decades in the making, and the company said the vehicle would soon be available in the U.S. 'Finally, finally,' said Schäfer, a top VW executive, as the bus they called the rolled across the stage to wolf whistles from the crowd. The reception since has been considerably less enthusiastic. Volkswagen had hoped to ride a wave of nostalgia for a much-loved symbol of 1960s hippie counterculture as a way to carve out a larger chunk of the lucrative U.S. auto market—a feat that has defied the world's second-largest carmaker for half a century. Instead, the vehicle is shaping up to be yet another American misadventure for the company, reaching dealers years late, over budget and just in time for a trade war. Built in Germany, the model was delivered to its first U.S. customer days after the election of Donald Trump, who would go on to introduce a 25% tariff on imported cars and roll back government support for EVs. With a battery range of less than 250 miles per charge, the doesn't compare favorably with other new EVs. The German-led design also failed to account for some uniquely American tastes: It often needs to be fitted with extra cupholders at U.S. ports. Capping the model's troubles, all the vehicles shipped to the U.S. were recalled in April because the third-row seats were too broad, allowing three passengers to squeeze into a space with only two seat belts. Sales were suspended for two months while Volkswagen fit plastic parts to narrow the row, which meant the company only delivered 564 in the three months before the end of June. Even before the recall, the luxury sticker price of the ID. Buzz, which starts at about $60,000, kept a brake on sales as consumers pivoted to more affordable wheels. In the U.S., where the vehicle became available toward the end of last year, just over 3,000 had been shipped to dealers by the end of March. While a slowdown in EV sales and President Trump's tariffs have caught other automakers off guard, the debacle highlights institutional problems, such as internal divisions and sluggish, Europe-centric product development, that have dogged Volkswagen for years. Senior Volkswagen executive Thomas Schäfer at the launch for the in Huntington Beach, Calif., in June 2023. 'Could have been there earlier? Probably, yes,' Kjell Gruner, president of Volkswagen Group of America, told reporters earlier this year. A spokesman for the in Germany said it was a 'halo' product designed to bring drivers to showrooms rather than sell in great numbers. He said it only arrived in the U.S. last year, following a 2022 launch in Europe, because Volkswagen's American business decided that a three-row extended version that only came later was the best fit for the U.S. market. Many hardcore VW fans have been disappointed by the rollout. In Dallas, Texas, European car enthusiast and parts supplier Autrey McVicker was 'dead set on getting the Buzz' until his dealer told him the pomelo yellow and white version he had his eye on would cost $72,000, far more than he had expected. 'I just couldn't justify such a high expense for an EV that would most likely lose 50% of its value the first year,' he said. McVicker is still waiting for his He hopes to get one 'once they start popping up on the used market for what they are actually worth.' Golden age The original bus sold in the millions, embodying Volkswagen's name, which means 'the people's car' in German. In the 1960s, the bus and the Beetle helped Volkswagen enjoy rapid growth. U.S. sales peaked at almost 570,000 in 1970, more than a third of the brand's global total. At the time, the van was priced at the equivalent of around $20,000, less expensive than most cars. Many of them festooned with peace signs and flowers, and capable of moving large groups around the country cheaply, the bus was a favorite of surfers, young families and hippies. (When Grateful Dead guitarist Jerry Garcia died in 1995, Volkswagen ran an ad with a tear falling from one headlight.) It spawned 'van life' several generations before the term was embraced by social-media influencers. But as the dollar fell against the deutschmark and Japanese auto companies expanded to the U.S., Volkswagen lost its edge. By 1993, Volkswagen sales in the U.S. had declined to a low of less than 50,000. A few years later, the New Beetle helped to revive the brand by channeling its 1960s heritage, and Volkswagen began plotting a similar effort for the bus. A first attempt was shown at the 2001 Detroit auto show. The concept was a hit and was cleared for series production, but following a management change, the new bus was canceled for fear it would be too niche and costly. Instead the company launched a rebadged Chrysler minivan, the VW Routan, that flopped. It took the greatest scandal in Volkswagen's history for the company to get serious about reviving the bus. In January 2016, less than four months after the company admitted to cheating on emissions tests, Volkswagen executive Herbert Diess delivered the keynote address at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Diess started with an apology to the millions of customers with affected vehicles, then pledged to create 'a different and better company. A new Volkswagen.' 'Do you remember this iconic machine?' asked Diess, as a photo of a VW bus with a surfboard on the roof appeared on screen behind him. 'Ladies and gentlemen, the Volkswagen Budd-e.' Diess was one of a growing group of auto executives who believed the industry was on the cusp of an electric revolution, and was a fan of Elon Musk. The Tesla CEO was preparing to launch the company's first mass market vehicle, the Model 3 sedan, which he said would cost $35,000. Nearly 200,000 people reserved a Tesla on the first day orders opened, and Diess used the new competition as a motivating tool to push Volkswagen to move faster. Volkswagen had toyed with the idea of bringing out an electric version of the more aerodynamic Beetle, according to former executives. But the company settled on electrifying the bus, partly because Americans were turning away from small cars in ever larger numbers. A Volkswagen bus in Greenwich Village, circa 1965. Diess saw the Volkswagen people carrier as a way to recapture what made the company popular in 1960s America: fun, affordable vehicles. Making them electric would help dispel the stench of its emissions scandal. The Budd-e concept offered a 'journey to the year 2019,' Diess said. By mid-2017, when in Pebble Beach he announced regular production of the he was promising the first deliveries in 2022. It didn't reach America until 2024, after he had left the company. Internal rivalries In his then role as head of the Volkswagen brand, Diess was in charge of the group's pivot to becoming an electric-car maker. Volkswagen owns luxury automakers Audi and Porsche in a structure that encourages competition between rival teams to develop new technologies, such as those feeding into the novel approach to electric vehicles that spawned the The belief was that friendly competition would yield a better product, but it had the effect of slowing down decision-making on the according to a former executive at Volkswagen's North American arm. The competition also drove up costs as the departments duplicated efforts, the person said. Volkswagen, which developed the alongside other EVs such as the ID.4, later vied with the company's separate commercial-vehicle arm for the right to produce it. Elon Musk and Herbert Diess with the Volkswagen Diess had considered making the vehicle in the U.S., where Volkswagen opened a factory in Chattanooga in 2011. As a compromise to get the over the line, Diess gave the vehicle to the commercial-vehicle business, which had produced the original bus and made its successor vehicles for sale across Europe. Chattanooga got to produce the more mainstream ID.4 SUV instead, while the commercial business gave up a project to electrify an existing van. But the commercial-vehicle engineers had less expertise on electric-vehicle technology and building automobiles for sale in the U.S. 'Commercial-vehicle engineers had to learn a lot of things, and the other engineers said, 'We're too busy, you figure it out yourself,'' the former Volkswagen North America executive said. 'That's why it took so damn long.' The commercial-vehicle business is also based at a plant in Hanover that is among the company's most expensive. The labor cost of producing a vehicle in Germany was roughly $3,307 last year, compared with $1,341 in the U.S., according to a recent report by consultants at Oliver Wyman. Hundreds of millions of euros were also spent on upgrading the plant to accommodate production of an EV on an all-new platform. The decision to make the vehicle in Hanover was at least partially due to Volkswagen's complicated political situation. Hanover is the capital of Lower Saxony, the German region that owns 20% of the company's voting shares and has two seats on its board. 'Herbert's plans to take the bus out of Hanover and put it in another country didn't go down well with Lower Saxony,' recalls one executive who was involved in the project. The Volkswagen spokesman said the factories run by the commercial-vehicle business were the only ones with the equipment to build a vehicle with side panels such as the Supply shortages pushed up battery costs during the pandemic, which was especially impactful for the given the large battery required to move a bus. High costs meant the plusher interior features initially envisaged, such as a soft dashboard and door panels, were gradually replaced with cheaper plastics as the project progressed. The rich people's car The styling of the original bus that made it so endearing turned out to translate poorly in the EV age. When Diess showed an prototype in 2017, he promised EVs that would be 'affordable for millions, not just to millionaires.' The company prepared its Hanover factory to produce up to 130,000 units a year, and executives hinted that they could in time manufacture it in the U.S. as well. Only around 30,000 units were sold last year, hurt in Europe by key markets including Germany and Sweden rolling back EV subsidies. The original VW bus had its engine at the rear, giving it an unusually flat front and poor aerodynamics. For an EV, minimizing weight and air drag is key to maximizing range per unit of expensive battery power. An at a Volkswagen plant in Hanover, Germany, in 2022. Volkswagen's designers made the front of the much more sloping than that of the original bus, but they still had to use an outsize battery to report an anemic range of 234 miles at full charge. When the finally hit U.S. dealerships in October, the $60,000 price tag was criticized as being higher than many competitors' vehicles, which could also travel farther on a single battery charge. 'Anyone who has been around VW thinks the price point is high,' said Fred Emich IV, a Volkswagen and Kia dealer. Dazed and confused Designing and building cars in Germany for the U.S. comes with problems beyond just high costs. After less than a year on the U.S. market, the has already been subject to two recall notices, both for glaring design oversights. In April, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration warned that the vehicle showed the international brake-warning sign in amber rather than the word 'brake' in red capital letters, which is the requirement in the U.S. A few weeks later, the body said the third-row seat was too wide because it could accommodate three people even though it only had two seat belts. The company is fitting plastic parts to cover the sides of the seats in the roughly 5,600 vehicles affected. Volkswagen also appeared to miss the biggest appeal of the to American car buyers: its paint job. The top-of-the-line comes in a two-tone paint job with names like Cabana Blue and Pomelo Yellow, reminiscent of the vintage models often found in psychedelic hues. The base model is only offered in pedestrian white, gray or black. To help juice sales of those models, Volkswagen started directing dealers to wrap the cheaper versions with colored vinyl. The snafus are emblematic of Volkswagen's struggles to bring products designed for European tastes or regulatory standards to the U.S. Used to catering to sedan-loving Europeans, the company was slow to introduce SUVs as Americans started to embrace them in the 2000s. The emissions scandal itself was rooted in an effort to adapt a European technology for tighter U.S. nitrogen-oxide emissions standards, at minimal cost. 'The problem with all of the Volkswagen brands has always been that they've just been a bit too Europe-centric,' said Citigroup analyst Harald Hendrikse. The company has made clear it wants to change that. At Volkswagen's annual general meeting in May, Chief Executive Officer Oliver Blume said it was 'formulating a vision for North America,' where it wants to grow 'with products that are consistently geared to the expectations of American customers.' But Blume didn't evoke the Instead he talked about Scout, the heritage SUV brand for which the company is building a $2 billion new factory in South Carolina. Write to Sean McLain at and Stephen Wilmot at How Volkswagen's Electric Bus Went From American Flagship to Flop How Volkswagen's Electric Bus Went From American Flagship to Flop How Volkswagen's Electric Bus Went From American Flagship to Flop
Indian Express
26-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
C Raja Mohan writes: Eurasian powers must find political answers to security problems
Having shaken the Middle East by bombing Iran's nuclear facilities and facilitating a fragile ceasefire between Tel Aviv and Tehran, US President Donald Trump has turned his disruptive energies to Europe. This week's NATO summit in The Hague is a pivotal moment for the transatlantic alliance and the broader European security order. But the implications of Trump's disruptive interventions are not confined to the Middle East or Europe. They reverberate across the Indo-Pacific, and could herald a wider transformation in Eurasian geopolitics. As Washington becomes an agent of profound structural change in both the Middle East and Europe, new centres of gravity are beginning to emerge. Among them is Germany, which is repositioning itself from a 'reluctant power' into the strategic anchor in Europe. A German-led Europe could, in turn, become a key player in the future of Eurasia. This year's 32-member NATO summit takes place amid deepening anxieties about the alliance's future. The basic assumptions of NATO look increasingly unsustainable. The Russian invasion of Ukraine, persistent transatlantic tensions, and Trump's repeated questioning of NATO's utility have pushed the alliance into uncharted territory. Trump's insistence that Europe take full ownership of its security is compelling a long-overdue geopolitical reckoning on the old continent. The search for new strategic leadership within Europe has turned to Germany — its economic dynamo and geopolitical core. When NATO was founded in 1949, its first secretary-general, Lord Ismay, famously declared its goal: 'To keep the Americans in, the Russians out, and the Germans down.' In the post-War order, this formula made sense: A divided Germany had to be contained; the Soviet threat loomed large; and American military and economic might underwrote Western Europe's security. But the present moment demands a very different configuration. For decades, Germany embraced constitutional pacifism and avoided hard power politics. Even after reunification and its rise as a global economic force, Berlin remained content to rely on American security guarantees. This solidified its image as an 'economic giant' and 'geopolitical dwarf'. Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 shattered that wisdom about Germany. Chancellor Olaf Scholz's declaration of a Zeitenwende —a historic turning point —marked the beginning of Germany's strategic reorientation. A €100 billion special fund was set aside to modernise the Bundeswehr, the German armed forces. Berlin pledged to meet NATO's defence spending target of 2 per cent of GDP, and took the unprecedented step of supplying lethal weapons to Ukraine. That transition is now being consolidated under Chancellor Friedrich Merz, whose firmer stance on defence reflects a broader consensus in Berlin about the need for German leadership in a turbulent Europe. Under Merz, Germany has not only accelerated military modernisation but has also taken on frontline roles — leading NATO's Enhanced Forward Presence in Lithuania and pledging to permanently deploy a combat-ready brigade there. Germany is emerging as a 'security provider' at a time when the Russian threat looms and America is not reliable. The urgency of Europe's strategic recalibration is underscored by Trump's warmth towards Vladimir Putin, his refusal to acknowledge a Russian threat to Europe and repeated calls to reintegrate Russia into the G8, and his pressure on Ukraine to trade territory for peace with Moscow. But the bigger question is this: If Trump does not view Russia as a threat and seeks reconciliation with Moscow, Europe will need more than higher defence spending. It will need to recalibrate its regional relations. Trump's actions in the Middle East mirror this disregard for traditional threat perceptions and a penchant for breaking geopolitical taboos. His first term saw the brokering of the Abraham Accords between Israel and some Arab states. He is now seeking to extend these to include Saudi Arabia. Some in Trump's inner camp are dreaming of 'Cyrus Accords' that will promote normalisation of relations between Iran and Israel when Tehran breaks loose from the stranglehold of the present theocracy. The name comes from Cyrus the Great, the Persian king who liberated the Jews from the Babylonian captivity 2,500 years ago. Meanwhile, the weakening of Iran is bound to rejig regional balances in the Middle East. As Trump rethinks US relations with Russia and China, major powers in Europe and Asia will have to rethink their great power relations and look beyond the US security alliances. The same doubts about US commitments to Eurasia that haunt European capitals now resonate in Tokyo, Seoul, Canberra, and Wellington. The absence of Asian leaders from Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea at this year's NATO summit marks a stark shift. In recent years, these nations sought to strengthen Asia-Europe coordination through NATO. None of America's European or Asian allies can really meet the 5 per cent of GDP defence spending goal being demanded by Washington. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, eager to please Trump by signalling a new consensus in favour of spending 5 per cent, glosses over the differences with the US. The US President is, however, not affirming the American commitment to defend the Europeans against Russia. The uncertainty triggered by Trump's approach is bound to compel Europe to eventually seek 'strategic autonomy' from Washington. Merz recognises this when he says the higher spending on defence is not just about accommodating Trump but of dealing with the existential threats to European security, especially from Russia. Eurasian powers can't simply solve their security problems by throwing money at the military. They will have to find political answers to their security problems. Such solutions will inevitably involve rethinking their current fraught relations with their neighbours. From the war in Ukraine to the bombings to restructure Iran's regime, and from the questioning of NATO to the shadow over America's Asian alliances, there is the unmistakable sense that we are at the birth of a new geopolitical order in Eurasia. For Europe, this means a more assertive Germany at the heart of NATO. For the Middle East, it could mean a gradual shift away from US military guarantees towards regional reconciliation. And in the Indo-Pacific, it implies a growing need for independent strategies and deeper political and military coordination among US allies and partners. The transitions will not be easy, but an America that is turning inwards should help concentrate the minds of Eurasian decision makers. India, which straddles the three regions, must adapt. Delhi's growing strategic engagement with Europe, its openness to partnerships with all major actors in the Middle East, and its recent effort to stabilise ties with China and strengthen independent engagement with ASEAN, Australia, Japan, and South Korea, while deepening ties with Trump's America, should position it well to navigate this emerging world of diminished certainties. The writer is a visiting professor at the Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore, a distinguished fellow at the Council on Strategic and Defence Studies in Delhi and a contributing editor on international affairs for The Indian Express
Irish Daily Mirror
05-06-2025
- Irish Daily Mirror
Maddie McCann search in race against time with just hours left to find evidence
The search for missing toddler Madeleine McCann has resumed for a third and final day near where she disappeared in Praia da Luz in 2007. It's expected to be called off today if German and Portuguese police fail to find any evidence relating to her disappearance 18 years ago. This morning search teams have been spotted using a JCB digger to clear rubble from the remains of a derelict building at the far eastern end of the 50-hectare site between Praia da Luz and Lagos. Yesterday, the operation moved away from disused farm buildings close to where prime suspect Christian Brueckner used to live when the three-year-old vanished on May 3 2007. It comes after Brueckner gave a face-to-face interview with the German network RTL from prison. A man who claims he was close to Christian Brueckner says investigatiors are currently searching the wrong location. Ken Ralphs told GB News that Brueckner's alleged accomplice "started to cry" one night and confessed "he was going to get involved with Christian to take a child in Praia de Luz". According to Mr Ralphs, there was a "property and a house" which was being used by the German national before he returned to his homeland. He believes officers should be focussing on that location, rather than where they're currently searching. During yesterday's search, investigators were spotted walking away from one of the search areas with a box - which was taken to a tent in their operations centre. Local newspaper Correio da Manha said the material had been collected from one of the abandoned buildings being searched, just a few miles from Praia da Luz. The newspaper said the material will be analysed to see if it contains anything relevant to the investigation. German and Portuguese police are yet to make any official comments about the search. Portuguese detectives at the search scene say they are not planning on being here tomorrow - suggesting this is the final day of the German-led operation. Officers are trying to find evidence that could implicate the prime suspect, Christian Brueckner, who is currently in prison for raping a 72-year-old woman in Praia da Luz in 2005. He is due to be released in September. This is the house Christian Brueckner was reportedly staying in Monte Judeu, Portugal. Searches are being carried out close to Praia De Luz, by officers investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, in countryside a few miles from the resort where she was last seen in 2007. The search is being conducted at the request of the German federal police as they look for evidence that could implicate Brueckner, who German prosecutors say is the prime suspect in Madeleine's disappearance. The search has resumed for a third day. A JCB digger can be seen clearing rubble from the remains of a derelict building at the far eastern end of the 50-hectare site between Praia da Luz and Lagos. A completely separate operation to carry out the controlled demolition of unstable cliffs next to the scene is taking place today, involving fire crews, maritime police and local officials. The prime suspect in the disappearance of Madeleine McCann has been described by a former neighbour as an "angry" young man who was heard having "arguments with his girlfriend". Ruth Maclean, a British expat who lived next door to Christian Brueckner in 2007 - just a mile from the latest search area - told The Times: "He was my neighbour, he was German, young, quite angry. I would hear him having arguments with his girlfriend." She added: "He raped a lady in the town. I heard about that afterwards, just a ghastly piece of work. But I didn't know of him being a ghastly piece of work at the time." Slamming the search effort, Maclean said: "We are all so exhausted. It just goes on and on. It beggars belief." "I know the properties [being searched] because I ride up there all the time with my horses. There may have been one or two wells in the old days... The fact they are going to dredge them seems absolutely ludicrous, but who knows." Searches for Madeleine McCann are due to resume this morning close to where she disappeared from Praia da Luz, Portugal. German and Portuguese police will have until Friday to find any evidence relating to her disappearance 18 years ago. German police are searching the site in Praia da Luz after they received a tip-off. Authorities from the country previously searched around the area in 2023 amid suspicion Christian Brueckner might have been at the site around when Madeleine McCann vanished. Brueckner has claimed he has no involvement with her disappearance and called the area his "paradise" that he liked to visit. An eyewitness has said its "clear" search activity in Praia da Luz has moved. Sky News reporter Dan Whitehead, who is at the site, said: "The focus yesterday for police was on disused farm buildings, close to where the prime suspect Christian B lived. "It's clear that the activity has moved elsewhere at the moment." In April this year, ministers approved up to £108,000 in additional funding for Scotland Yard detectives investigating the disappearance of Madeleine McCann. The probe, known as Operation Grange, has totalled more than £13.2m since 2011. The investigation into Madeleine's disappearance was initially being handled by the Portuguese authorities, with the aid of the Metropolitan Police - but German investigators took over in 2020 after identifying German national Christian Brueckner as a prime suspect. Brueckner is coming the end of a seven-year long prison sentence in Germany for the rape of a 72-year-old American tourist in Portugal in 2005. He is due to be released in September, but his release may be pushed back to early 2026 if he fails to pay a fine he owes. The McCann family said in a statement today that they will not be doing any interviews during the investigation. A spokeswoman for the official Find Madeleine Campaign said: 'Due to an active police investigation, Kate and Gerry are not doing interviews at this time.' Madeleine McCann's parents are helping their son realise his goal of becoming a gold medal Olympic athlete as investigators search for a trace of his missing sister. Madeleine, who went missing aged just three in 2007 while her family was on holiday in the Algarve, has two younger twin siblings who returned to the UK with Kate and Gerry McCann after her disappearance. Another round of searches began this week, with Portuguese and German investigators combing through land in the municipality of Lagos, near Praia da Luz in search for a trace of the girl who would now be aged 22. But, back in Britain, elite swimmer Sean McCann is training for a possible shot at Olympic glory. Sean and his twin sister Amelie were just two years old when their sister disappeared 18 years ago. In the nearly two decades since she went missing, the 20-year-old has become a highly accomplished swimmer tipped to join Team GB in Los Angeles in 2028. German police were seen using a JCB digger at a large derelict farmhouse - where prime suspect Christian Brueckner used to live - today. This was paired with officers using ground-penetrating radar around the property and on the ground floor of the building. German police have until June 6 to look through the areas and properties in southern Portugal they believe could be linked to Madeleine McCann's disappearance. The warrants issued be German prosecutors have allowed police to search the area from June 2 to 6 - meaning there will be just two more days left of this current search. German officers are aiming to look through "multiple areas a day" in the operation intended to continue until at least Friday. This search in Portugal comes two years after police were last in the area for this case. German cops spent a week looking throught the Barragem do Arade reservoir, around 30 miles from where Madeleine was last seen. They searched this location in 2023 after they got a tip-off. Main suspect Christian Bruekner is said to have visited the area frequently, referring to it as "paradise". Convicted paedophile Christian Brueckner appeared to show "no guilt" and says he is looking forward to a "nice steak and a beer" when he walks free. The 48-year-old German at the centre of the Madeleine McCann case gave a face-to-face interview with the German network RTL, from prison - amid the fresh search in Portugal. He is currently serving the end of a seven-year sentence for the brutal rape of a 72-year-old woman, in the Algarve in 2006. After the interview, the RTL reporter Ulrich Oppold said: "Christian B. seemed intelligent to me, perhaps a little distant, and I think he had prepared himself very well for our conversation. He knew exactly what he wanted to say and, above all, what he didn't want to say." Brueckner said he would not talk to the reporter about Madeleine, after a discussion with his lawyers. Images have shown a house the prime suspect in Madeleine McCann's case had reportedly been stay in. The property is in Monte Judeu, around a 20 minute drive away from Praia da Luz. German police have launched a renewed search near Praia da Luz, where Madeleine McCann went missing 18 years ago, but Portuguese cops have shared their thoughts. An anonymous Portuguese police source said they have "low expectations" about this search. Despite this, they added that they have been given "orders" and are "not going to stand in the way". The source told The Sun: "The information that's being put out in the public arena is that they'll last five days with the preparation work and clean-up afterwards and we've been told to expect three days of full work on the ground. But on the Portuguese side at least there's wishful thinking this could all be done in one day. "We would love to be proved wrong and see a significant discovery because it's what we've all been working towards for so many years. But the area that's going to be turned upside down this week has already been searched by Portuguese officers." Cops have been pictured search in and around several abandoned properties near Praia da Luz. These homes, linked to Christian Brueckner, have been left nearly falling apart with no windows and much of the home brought to rubble. Parts of these homes had no roof and there was graffiti on the walls. Several other locations in the area have also been looked at by cops. Police have been pictured using ground-penertaing radar around an derelict home once lived in by prime suspect Christian Brueckner. German cops have been spotted clearing vegetation around the home and using diggers to remove rubble. The penetrating radars use electromagnetic radiation which sends pulses into the ground to help signal if any objects are below the surface. This could help police dig in more precise locations rather than pull up huge amounts of land. A JCB digger has today been spotted moving into the large derelict farmhouse - where prime suspect Christian Brueckner used to live - which was the focus of yesterday's search. Two German officers are using the ground-penetrating radar on the ground floor of the building. Yesterday, officers were seen moving mounds of earth before taking it away in plastic bags for further examination. This week's operation is focusing on a sparsely developed area of land around 3.5 miles from Praia da Luz, where Madeleine was last seen while on holiday with her parents Kate and Gerry in May 2007. Alongside those using ground-penetrating radar and excavating the site with diggers, other members of the search have been combing the designated search area. The major new operation began earlier this week, and appears to be at its busiest today. The Metropolitan Police have said they are aware of this week's operation, but that British officers will not be present. Scotland Yard took over the Madeleine McCann missing persons investigation in 2011, following a request from then-Home Secretary Theresa May. German police last visited Portugal in connection with the Madeleine McCann case in 2023. They spent a week searching the Barragem do Arade reservoir, located about 30 miles from Praia da Luz, following reports of a tip-off. Christian Bruekner, the main suspect, is said to have visited the area frequently, referring to it as 'paradise.' The reservoir had previously been searched by divers in 2008 at the request of Portuguese lawyer Marcos Aragão Correia, who acted on claims that Madeleine's body might be there. However, both searches ultimately yielded no results. Police are aiming to search "multiple areas a day" in an operation intended to continue until at least Friday, June 6. It is not clear what sparked the latest search, which is being carried out just a couple of miles from Praia da Luz - the last known location of Madeleine McCann. Police are likely to be looking for a body, or for any signs that Madeleine was taken to the area after she vanished. It's been reported that cracks were already appearing yesterday between the Portuguese police who have made it clear they are simply 'complying' with decisions they haven't taken and their German counterparts. A Portuguese police source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said overnight: "We have low expectations about these searches but we've got our orders and we're not going to stand in the way. "The information that's being put out in the public arena is that they'll last five days with the preparation work and clean-up afterwards and we've been told to expect three days of full work on the ground. But on the Portuguese side at least there's wishful thinking this could all be done in one day. The scale of this week's searches could be the most extensive since the initial investigation into Madeleine's disappearance was closed in 2008 - a year after the toddler vanished in Praia da Luz. It will focus on wells, ruins, and water storage tanks on 21 plots of privately-owned land. German police requested the four-day long operation close to a cottage prime suspect Christian Brueckner lived when Maddie went mssing 18 years ago.
