Latest news with #RobertLee
NBC News
2 days ago
- Politics
- NBC News
Ukraine's massive drone attack deep inside Russia highlights how they have changed battlefield tactics
Dubbed operation 'Spiderweb,' Ukraine's audacious drone attack Sunday on four Russian air bases — one of them deep inside Siberia — has brought the use of unmanned aerial vehicles in modern warfare sharply into focus. While accounts differ on the extent of the damage caused by the drones, which were reportedly smuggled to the perimeter of the bases in the backs of trucks, Ukraine's security service, the SBU, put the estimated cost to the Kremlin at $7 billion. Russia has said little about the attacks, although the country's defense ministry acknowledged in a statement that some planes caught fire. The strikes have highlighted the increasing importance of drones for both Russia and Ukraine in the war, which entered its fourth year in February. And experts told NBC News that both sides are increasingly turning to cheap, commercially available first-person view or quadcopter drones that can often be purchased from online retailers and easily converted into deadly weapons — simple technology that is having a huge impact on the battlefield in Ukraine and further afield. Their use is 'going to become very, very common,' Robert Lee, a senior fellow at the Philadelphia-based Foreign Policy Research Institute think tank, told NBC News in an interview. Drones were used when Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime was overthrown in December, he said. 'They're here and because they're ubiquitous, because they are quite useful and they're demonstrating that every day in Ukraine,' he said. 'There's no doubt that they're going to be used by all sorts of groups, whether it's criminal groups or terrorist groups, and they pose a quite significant threat,' he said, adding, 'I think we're a little bit behind the power curve on this and actually getting ready to counter them.' Targeting civilians As she was riding her bicycle to a cosmetology appointment in Antonivka, a rural community in Ukraine's southern Kherson region, Anastasia Pavlenko, 23, said she noticed a drone 'hunting' her. 'It took off, followed me and I zigzagged on the bike,' the mother of two said of the September attack, adding that a second drone suddenly appeared with 'a shell attached to it.' Despite her best attempts to escape, she said the second drone dropped the shell 'right on my head' and it bounced down onto her thigh and exploded on the asphalt next to her. 'Blood was coming from my neck, and there were fragments under my ribs,' Pavlenko said, adding she somehow managed to keep cycling and take cover under a bridge where she screamed for help until she started to lose consciousness. 'I just had a small purse, shorts, a T-shirt and long loose hair, so it was clear that I was a girl,' she said, adding that she was not wearing military colors or carrying any weapons when she was hit. Doctors were unable to remove shrapnel fragments from her neck, ribs, or leg, she said, adding she had been unable to return to work at her coffee shop because she 'can't handle physical stress.'
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong lawmakers support MPF change to make accounts fully portable
Hong Kong lawmakers expressed support for allowing 'full portability' in the city's Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) , which would allow members to move their entire pension balance to a different provider once a year. Legislative Council panel meeting discussed a legal change on Monday that would implement full portability next year. Currently, members can move their own contributions, but not those made by their employer, once a year. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu unveiled the proposed change in his policy address in October. The change would 'give more choice to employees, while also adding to competition in the industry', said lawmaker Robert Lee Wai-wang, who is also the chairman of Hong Kong-based Grand Finance Group. 'The full-portability reform aims to encourage employees to proactively manage their MPF investments and promote market competition, thereby creating room for fee reductions,' said Sharon Ko Yee-wai, deputy secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, during the council's financial affairs panel. Established in 2000, the MPF is a compulsory retirement scheme that requires employers and employees to each pay 5 per cent of the salary, up to a combined HK$3,000 (US$385) a month, into an investment account managed by one of 12 MPF providers. At the end of March, the scheme covered 4.75 million members and had total assets of HK$1.338 trillion Only employers could choose the MPF provider until 2012, when the Employee Choice Arrangement was introduced. Commonly known as 'semi-portability', this allows employees to transfer their own contributions – but not those made by their employers – to a new provider once a year. Employees conducted about 1 million transactions involving HK$50 billion under the semi-portability regime from its launch up to April of this year, Ko said.
New Straits Times
24-04-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
Top corporate golfers set for WCGC Malaysia battles
A thrilling showdown among Malaysia's top corporate golfers is set to unfold as they vie for the honour of flying the Jalur Gemilang at the World Corporate Golf Challenge (WCGC) World Final in Shanghai from Oct 19 to 23. The WCGC Malaysia will serve as the national qualifier, comprising five legs at some of Klang Valley's most prestigious golf courses, running from May to September. The campaign tees off at Seri Selangor Golf Club on May 22, followed by stops at Tropicana Golf and Country Resort (June 24), Glenmarie Golf and Country Club (July 22), Templer Park Country Club (Aug 21), and concludes with the National Final at Kota Permai Golf and Country Club on Sept 25. The tournament format features two-player teams representing their companies in each leg, with the overall champions of the National Final earning the coveted spot to represent Malaysia at the WCGC World Final. Last year's Malaysian representatives, Robert Lee and Anushka Gayan of Leonian Malaysia, did the nation proud by finishing a commendable third at the World Final in Haikou, China. The WCGC, renowned as one of the world's leading corporate golf tournaments, is held across 25 countries globally. Adding prestige to the local event, Raja Muda of Selangor Tengku Amir Shah Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah, who serves as royal patron of WCGC Malaysia, graced the official media launch held at Glenmarie Golf and Country Club on Wednesday.
BBC News
10-04-2025
- BBC News
Inside the Leicestershire country park with mixed herd of cattle
You might not expect to see Scottish Highland and English Longhorns cows roaming in a park when out for a walk, but that's exactly what you'll find in Hill Country Park in Woodhouse Eaves is home to one such herd and from April to October the cattle are in view of visitors as part of a heathland restoration Robert Lee said the animals are "fantastic conservation grazers" and help to restore and manage habitats in the park."As the cows wander around they create little pockets of enriched grassland and areas of depleted grassland, creating a lovely mosaic of different micro-habitats across the area," he said. Mr Lee said the mixture of cattle, which includes a small black Dexter cow, were selected because they like to forage, adding they are "quite happy eating rough materials"."The cows eat the grass down, but they also eat things like brambles and tree saplings, so they control the area for us," he said."Without any grazing pressure the area will naturally return to woodland."The ranger said over the years wildlife in the country park, run by Leicestershire County Council, has thrived."Many species have adapted to living in the heathland environment - plants, butterflies, insects and a lot of bird species," he said. Mr Lee said during the winter and colder months the cows are moved to fields not accessible to the said although the cattle are used to visitors and people taking photographs, he advised people to keep a "respectful distance" and for dog owners to keep their pets under control or on a Lee added it was important for owners to clean up after their pets as dog poo could carry diseases which could be "really detrimental" to the animals."Leaving bits of plastic around, especially bagged poo, cows have been known to choke on it," he said.
Bloomberg
25-03-2025
- Health
- Bloomberg
US Approved Device for Battlefield Injuries Despite Serious Risks, Former FDA Reviewer Says
The US government approved a medical device that was highly sought after by military officials to stem battlefield bleeding and save limbs, despite internal warnings among regulators that the product poses serious risks that could lead to death, a former US Food and Drug Administration reviewer said. Robert Lee, who spent 10 years at the FDA, said agency reviewers were pressured to approve Humacyte Inc.'s Symvess even after he says he repeatedly raised concerns with senior FDA leadership and asked them to hold a public advisory panel meeting of outside experts to discuss the risks and benefits of the product.
