2025-12-12 23:12
US has carried out strikes on suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean Departure follows other senior military exits under US Defense Secretary Hegseth Trump administration has signaled foreign policy shift toward Western Hemisphere MIAMI, Dec 12 (Reuters) - The admiral in charge of U.S. military forces in Latin America retired two years early on Friday, amid rising tensions with Venezuela that include Wednesday's seizure of an oil tanker and more than 20 deadly strikes on suspected drug-smuggling boats. Three U.S. officials and two people familiar with the matter told Reuters that Admiral Alvin Holsey was pushed out by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Two officials said Hegseth had grown frustrated with Southern Command as he sought to flex U.S. military operations and planning in the region. Sign up here. One official confirmed that discussion of whether Hegseth would dismiss Holsey surfaced roughly two weeks before the surprise announcement of his departure. Holsey announced on October 16 his intention to step down in December. He has not publicly explained his early retirement. In remarks at his retirement ceremony on Friday morning, he was upbeat as he reflected on his 37-year-long career. Speaking between rows of palm trees at Southern Command headquarters in Miami, he called on the United States to keep standing by fellow democracies that share U.S. values. "We must always be there for like-minded partners, like-minded nations who share our values: democracy, rule of law and human rights," Holsey said. Some officials have privately speculated that he opposed the recent U.S. strikes on suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean. However, in a closed-door meeting with senior lawmakers on Tuesday, Holsey insisted that his decision had nothing to do with the operations in his command, according to comments by Republican Representative Mike Rogers published in Politico. Holsey formally handed over command to his deputy, Air Force Lieutenant General Evan Pettus, during a ceremony that extolled his accomplishments in uniform. "You're an extraordinary human who has always led with your heart, your head and gone all in (for) every single day of your service," said General Dan Caine, who became the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in April after his predecessor was fired. Pettus will serve as acting head of U.S. Southern Command. One source familiar with the matter said President Donald Trump is expected to nominate Lieutenant General Frank Donovan, vice commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, as Holsey’s successor, subject to Senate confirmation. The source cautioned that the nomination has not yet been formalized and could change. Holsey's premature retirement is rare but not unprecedented. In 2008, Central Command commander Admiral William Fallon also retired a year into his term overseeing U.S. forces in the Middle East after making comments about Iran and other issues that irked the Bush administration. Holsey is the latest in a series of senior officers to leave their positions since Hegseth took over the Pentagon. Some departures have been abrupt, including those of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, C.Q. Brown, and the top naval officer, Lisa Franchetti, who was the first woman to hold that post. MONROE DOCTRINE REVIVAL? The Trump administration has signalled a major shift in foreign policy over the last few months. A strategy document released this week called for reviving the 19th-century Monroe Doctrine, which declared the Western Hemisphere to be Washington's zone of influence. A major U.S. military buildup of warships in the Caribbean - including the deployment of an aircraft carrier strike group - has underscored that policy shift, along with new U.S. training deployments to a revived jungle school in Panama. Trump has also intensified pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, a close ally of Russia and China whom Washington accuses of drug trafficking. Maduro denies the allegations and has said the U.S. military buildup aims to topple him and seize Venezuela's oil resources. The U.S. Coast Guard's seizure of an oil tanker on Wednesday was the first interdiction of Venezuelan crude amid U.S. sanctions that have been in force since 2019. Reuters reported on Thursday that the United States is preparing to intercept more ships carrying Venezuelan oil. Trump's military operations against alleged drug smugglers have been under intense scrutiny following a September 2 decision to launch a second strike on a suspected drug boat in the Caribbean. The Defense Department's Law of War Manual forbids attacks on combatants who are incapacitated, unconscious or shipwrecked, as long as they abstain from hostilities and do not attempt to escape. The manual cites firing upon shipwreck survivors as an example of a "clearly illegal" order that should be refused. The Trump administration has framed the attacks as a war with drug cartels, calling them armed groups and saying the drugs being carried to the United States kill Americans. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/us-admiral-leading-us-troops-latin-america-step-down-2025-12-12/
2025-12-12 22:58
Dec 12 (Reuters) - Oilfield services provider ProPetro Holding Corp (PUMP.N) , opens new tab announced on Friday that its energy unit, PROPWR, signed a deal with a unit of Coterra Energy (CTRA.N) , opens new tab to supply power for building and installing microgrids in New Mexico's Permian Basin. Big U.S. firms are increasingly turning to on-site power generation and microgrids , opens new tab to cut fuel costs and improve reliability, as grid constraints and rising electricity demand strains local infrastructure. Sign up here. Deployment and operations for the project at the Permian Basin, the largest U.S. oilfield, are scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2026. PROPWR said it now has over 220 megawatts committed under contract and has placed orders for an additional 190 megawatts of equipment. ProPetro now expects 2026 capital spending of $250 million to $275 million, higher than its earlier estimate of $200 million to $250 million, on the back of the additional orders. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/propetro-enters-power-supply-agreement-with-coterras-unit-2025-12-12/
2025-12-12 21:40
BRUSSELS, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has urged the European Commission not to weaken the bloc's 2035 ban on new CO2-emitting cars, a letter seen by Reuters showed, as Brussels readies proposals to potentially roll back the policy. A leading German EU lawmaker on Friday the Commission will move next week to water down the policy, which would effectively ban new combustion engine cars from 2035 by requiring all cars sold after that date to have zero CO2 emissions. Governments, including Germany and Italy, have pressured the EU to weaken the 2035 ban, arguing this would protect automakers struggling with tough competition from China. Sign up here. In a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, dated Thursday, Sanchez said weakening the policy would risk jobs and factory closures by undermining Europe's attempts to transform its car industry into a powerhouse for manufacturing electric vehicles. "Any additional relaxation (of the policy) would risk triggering a significant delay in modernization investments, linked to a temporary slowdown in electric vehicle demand," the letter said. "We therefore reject that combustion vehicles or other technologies without proven viability could continue to be marketed beyond 2035," it said. Sanchez also called for a "green steel label" to reward auto manufacturers for using low-carbon materials, and a mandatory minimum share of EU-manufactured content in cars. The Commission is due to make an announcement on the policy on Tuesday. Manfred Weber, president of the largest lawmaker group in the European Parliament, the EPP, suggested this week the Commission would propose weakening the target to a 90% reduction in CO2 emissions for automakers' fleet targets for 2035. The planned ban is a key part of the EU's strategy to drive the continent's decarbonisation and boost the development of electric vehicles. Automakers, including Mercedes-Benz and BMW, have urged the EU to weaken the policy, amid slower-than-expected electric car sales. Sweden's Volvo Cars and others say they have already heavily invested in the transition to electric, and any reversal on the ban would be a betrayal. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/spain-urges-eu-not-weaken-2035-combustion-engine-ban-letter-shows-2025-12-12/
2025-12-12 21:07
Dec 12 (Reuters) - Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President Mary Daly said on Friday in a LinkedIn posting that she favored cutting interest rates at this week's monetary policy meeting. "This week’s (Federal Open Market Committee) decision was not an easy choice," Daly wrote , opens new tab, with the Fed facing conflicts between its job and inflation goals. Inflation is too high and the job market is getting softer, she said, adding "we cannot let the labor market falter." Sign up here. Daly wrote the Fed's quarter-percentage-point rate cut on Wednesday "puts us in a good place" to both lower inflation and to support the job market. https://www.reuters.com/business/feds-daly-says-this-weeks-rate-cut-was-right-move-fed-2025-12-12/
2025-12-12 21:03
BRUSSELS, Dec 12 (Reuters) - European Union countries are set to vote early next week to determine whether the bloc should sign a contentious trade agreement with South American bloc Mercosur by the end of the year, Denmark, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU, said on Friday. The EU and the bloc of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay reached agreement last December to create the EU's largest ever trade accord , opens new tab, some 25 years after negotiations were launched. However, France and other EU countries have expressed reservations, fearing increased imports would hurt their farmers. Sign up here. The European Commission, which negotiated the agreement, is seeking approval from EU members so that Commission President Ursula von der Leyen can travel to Brazil to sign it. "In the planning of the Danish presidency the intention is to have the vote on the Mercosur agreement next week to enable the Commission president to sign the agreement in Brazil on December 20. That has not changed," a Danish presidency official said on Friday. The outcome is uncertain. Approval requires a qualified majority of 15 EU members representing 65% of the EU population. Germany, Spain and the Nordic countries are clear supporters. However, Poland has said it will oppose the agreement, while the French and Italian positions are unclear. If those three, plus one more country, vote against or abstain, the deal would be rejected. The EU executive presented the accord , opens new tab for approval in September and sought to soften opposition by adding a mechanism that would allow the suspension of Mercosur preferential access for some farm products, such as beef, poultry and sugar. Supporters of the agreement, which would be the largest in terms of tariff reductions that the EU has struck, say it is an essential part of the EU's diversification strategy of seeking new markets and greater access to critical minerals amid geopolitical disruption in the form of U.S. tariffs and Chinese curbs on exports of chips and rare earths. Some EU diplomats said France had sought to delay a vote until January and believe it is now make-or-break time for the agreement. "If we don't sign Mercosur in the next days it will be dead," one EU diplomat said. "If we can't agree on Mercosur, we don't need to talk about European sovereignty anymore. We will make ourselves geopolitically irrelevant". https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/eu-vote-mercosur-trade-deal-set-next-week-denmark-says-2025-12-12/
2025-12-12 20:47
Tether bid values Turin club at 1.1 billion euros Agnelli family holding company Exor rejects proposal Exor looking to divest some Italian assets Buying Juventus could burnish crypto firm's image in Europe Juve struggling amid financial and sporting challenges MILAN, Dec 13 (Reuters) - Italy's Agnelli family has no intention of selling Juventus to crypto group Tether or anyone else, the CEO of their holding company said on Saturday, rejecting Tether's shock offer for Italy's most successful soccer club. "Juventus, our history and our values are not for sale," said Exor CEO John Elkann, who wore a team hoodie in a rare video address posted on the Turin-based Serie A club's website. Sign up here. Tether, headquartered in El Salvador and run by Italian Paolo Ardoino, a Juventus supporter, said on Friday it had submitted an all-cash proposal to buy Exor's stake in the club. Tether said it would make a public tender offer for the remaining Juventus (JUVE.MI) , opens new tab shares at the same price and it planned to invest one billion euros to support the club known in Italy as Juve if the deal goes ahead. The crypto company is offering Exor 2.66 euros per share, a source familiar with the matter said, valuing Juventus at just over one billion euros ($1.17 billion) and offering a 21% premium over Juventus' closing share price of 2.19 euros. Amsterdam-listed Exor (EXOR.AS) , opens new tab said in a statement its board had unanimously rejected the offer and had "no intention of selling any of its shares in Juventus to a third party". Juventus has not made an annual net profit for almost a decade, and its shares are down 27% so far this year. TETHER STABLECOIN PEGGED TO DOLLAR Tether, the issuer of a U.S. dollar-referenced stablecoin dubbed USDT, has already built a stake of more than 10% in Juventus this year, becoming its second-largest shareholder. By acquiring a European soccer club, Tether - whose business faces mounting EU regulatory scrutiny - could hope to gain credibility with the continent's establishment, while boosting its wider popularity. Tether said it is proposing to buy Exor's 65.4% of the total Juventus share capital, without officially disclosing a price. Exor, the largest shareholder in automaker Stellantis (STLAM.MI) , opens new tab and which controls sports car-maker Ferrari (RACE.MI) , opens new tab, has been streamlining its Italian portfolio. This year it agreed the sale of truck maker Iveco to India's Tata Motors (TAMO.NS) , opens new tab, and said on Monday it was in talks with Greek media group Antenna to sell its news operations, including two major newspapers and three popular radio stations. A sale of Juventus would likely be seen as the clearest sign yet of the family's gradual disengagement from their home country. The family's ties with the club date back to 1923 when Edoardo Agnelli became chair, and Elkann said in November that the family had no intention of selling shares. Investors, led by Exor, have poured around a billion euros of fresh cash into Juventus in the past seven years. JUVENTUS HAS STRUGGLED IN LAST FIVE YEARS Juventus has won the Italian championship 36 times, more than any other team, but has struggled since a ninth consecutive title in 2020. It currently sits in seventh place in Serie A. Once home to stars such as Michel Platini, Roberto Baggio, Alessandro Del Piero and Cristiano Ronaldo, Juventus has helped the Agnellis build consensus and popularity in Italy. Its support has weathered match-fixing and financial scandals, the most recent in 2023, when a false accounting case linked to player trading led to a 10-point deduction in Serie A. Juventus was also a driving force behind the failed attempt to launch a breakaway European Super League with a dozen other top clubs in 2021, challenging the authority of European soccer's governing body UEFA. Like other leading Serie A teams, it has had a hard time remaining competitive financially amid the growing dominance of England’s Premier League and European powerhouses such as Real Madrid, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain. Tether's USDT accounts for more than half the market of stablecoins pegged to the dollar, the Bank of Italy says. It had a market capitalization of around $186 billion as of Friday. The token is backed by U.S. Treasuries and dollars, and Tether is one of the 20 largest holders of U.S. government debt. Stablecoins are digital tokens that aim to maintain a stable value through a one-to-one peg to a traditional currency. They are backed by reserves, government bonds or deposits. ($1 = 0.8519 euros) https://www.reuters.com/sports/tether-submits-offer-buy-italian-soccer-club-juventus-2025-12-12/
