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Unlocking Ukraine’s economic potential

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:27:48 GMT

Dag Detter is the principal of Detter & Co, an advisor to governments, investors and IFIs such as the IMF, World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. He led the restructuring of the Swedish portfolio of state-owned assets and is the author of “The Public Wealth of Nations.”The reconstruction of Ukraine demands a comprehensive utilization of all potential funding sources and methods to improve the private investment climate in the country. And central to this endeavor is effectively managing Ukraine’s vast state-owned sector, which houses valuable public assets that can serve as a significant funding source.Before the war, public assets constituted the largest segment of wealth in Ukraine and were seen as plagued by inefficiency, corruption and fraud. And today, the state-owned sector is still a cornerstone of the country’s economic system, as well as its war effort.However, only proper management of these assets can generate sustained annual revenue streams, fosterin...

Canadian wildfire smoke reaches Europe as Canada reports its worst fire season on record

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:27:48 GMT

(CNN) — Canada has officially marked its worst wildfire season on record, with smoke from the blazes crossing the Atlantic Ocean and reaching western Europe on Monday.Canada has had a dramatic start to wildfire season, with at least 18,688,691 acres already charred across the country. Wildfire activity in Canada typically peaks from June to August, leaving more than half of the peak season still to come.As a result of the unprecedented start to the wildfire season, this year has become the worst fire season on record, surpassing the previous benchmark set in 1995 for the total area burned. In 1995, at least 17,559,303 acres were burned in the country, according to fire statistics from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre.And the smoke from the wildfires, which wrapped New York City in a cloud of smog earlier this month, has now reached as far as the United Kingdom, according to the UK Met Office.The smoke that has made its way into Europe ha...

Attleboro police seek help IDing person accused of stealing sneakers from teen

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:27:48 GMT

Attleboro police asked for the public’s help Monday in efforts to identify a person who police said allegedly accosted, assaulted and stole a pair of Air Force One sneakers from a 14-year-old girl late last week. Police said the incident happened near Cuddy Court on Friday around 6:30 p.m. Police shared photos of the man believed to be behind this incident and asked anyone with information on the incident to contact them at 508-222-1212.

Mets lose to Brewers after Drew Smith blows lead in first game back from sticky stuff suspension

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:27:48 GMT

Asking the Mets bullpen to protect a one-run lead for four innings is a tall ask these days. It proved to be Mount Everest levels of steep Monday night at Citi Field in a 2-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers.The Mets might have returned home after a 2-4 road trip through Houston and Philadelphia, but the same problems continue to plague them.Justin Verlander threw five scoreless, but inefficient innings and exited the game with the Mets up 1-0. Brewers right-hander Colin Rea was masterful, no-hitting the Mets (35-43) through four innings. But thanks to the speedy Starling Marte and his base-running abilities, the Mets were able to score in the fourth inning.But Drew Smith, in his first game back after serving a 10-game suspension for sticky stuff, couldn’t hold the lead. He gave up a two-run homer to rookie Joey Weimer in the sixth to hand the Brewers (41-37) the lead.So it goes for the Mets, who haven’t been able to figure out their pitching issues all season, but the bull...

Bruins clean up at NHL Awards Show

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:27:48 GMT

The Bruins did not get the only trophy they really wanted, but they cleaned up at the NHL Awards Show in Nashville on Monday. After the B’s won a record 65 games, that was pretty much expected.Though the B’s were shockingly bounced in the first round by the Florida Panthers, falling far short of their goal of the Stanley Cup, Linus Ullmark won the Vezina Trophy, Patrice Bergeron took home the Selke Award and Jim Montgomery won the Jack Adams Award as the league’s top coach.David Pastrnak, meanwhile, finished second in Hart Trophy voting to the runaway winner, Edmonton Oiler Connor McDavid, who just missed a unanimous vote. He got 195 of 196 first-place votes, with Pastrnak getting the only other one.It has been an amazing life turnaround for Montgomery, who was fired by the Dallas Stars in 2019 amid his struggles with alcoholism. He touched upon his journey in his acceptance speech.“My late father, Jim, who passed away a little while ago, impressed upon me the impo...

Players returning from LIV Golf is part of Saudis’ agreement with PGA Tour

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:27:48 GMT

The PGA Tour and European tour have agreed to work with Saudi backers of LIV Golf to decide how defectors to the rival league can return and what kind of punishment they should face, according to a framework agreement obtained by The Associated Press.The agreement also said the for-profit company to be formed by the PGA Tour and the Saudis will be the “entity for professional golf” and that the tours will coexist with LIV Golf.The framework agreement, signed on May 30, was among documents requested by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., for a July 11 hearing in Washington. Blumenthal chairs the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.“Our goal is to uncover the facts about what went into the PGA Tour’s deal with the Saudi Public Investment Fund and what the Saudi takeover means for the future of this cherished American institution and our national interest,” Blumenthal said last week.The PGA Tour has said it would participate, though it was not clear if Commissioner Jay ...

Was that actually a tsunami that hit Florida? Not the kind you think

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:27:48 GMT

An unexpected culprit toppled beach chairs along the sand at normally-calm Clearwater Beach, Florida last Wednesday. West Coast surfers might snicker at the cause, but the National Weather Service confirms the rare 4-foot wave was caused by a kind of tsunami, just not the kind you usually hear about. It was a meteotsunami, a type caused by storms with strong gusting winds, rather than the more common, dramatic tsunamis triggered by earthquakes.WHAT IS A METEOTSUNAMI?According to Paul Close, senior forecaster at the National Weather Service in Tampa Bay, when a line of storms tracks over the ocean, there can be 30 to 50 mile per hour winds near the leading edge. The winds push the water, increasing the wave height near the coast before it eventually crashes onto shore. Meteotsunamis only last about an hour because once the leading edge of the storm passes onto land, the action subsides.The meteotsunami was about 2.5 feet higher than the forecast wave height and around 4 feet higher t...

Toronto’s byelection voter turnout improves over 2022 mayoral election

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:27:48 GMT

Toronto’s voter turnout in Monday’s byelection significantly improved over the 2022 mayoral election, with over 720,000 votes recorded.Olivia Chow was elected the city’s new mayor, receiving just over 37 per cent of the vote. Former city councillor and deputy mayor Ana Bailão finished second, with 32 per cent, followed by former police chief Mark Saunders (8.5 per cent) and Anthony Furey (4.9 per cent).With more than 1.89 million eligible voters in Toronto, Monday’s byelection — prompted by John Tory’s sudden resignation in February — counted just over 722,000 votes cast as of publication, good for 38 per cent in terms of voter turnout.That’s compared to a dismal turnout in 2022 when Tory was re-elected in a landslide over Gil Penalosa. Roughly 550,000 votes were counted then (a 29 per cent voter turnout).The City of Toronto said nearly 130,000 residents attended 50 advance voting locations between June 8 and June 13. That was up from ...

Woman killed in Hamilton apartment building, police say

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:27:48 GMT

A woman was killed in a Hamilton apartment building on Monday, Hamilton Police tweeted.One suspect is in custody, police added.A heavy police presence is expected in the area of Herkimer Street, which only spans about four blocks.Hamilton Police are investigating a homicide at an apartment building on Herkimer St in #HamOnt.The victim is an adult female. One suspect is in custody.Expect a heavy police presence in the area. Anyone with information, please call Det Girgenti at 905-546-3874.— Hamilton Police (@HamiltonPolice) June 26, 2023

Man fatally shot in New Mexico movie theater over seat dispute

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 10:27:48 GMT

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — An argument over seating at an Albuquerque movie theater escalated into a shooting that left a man dead and sent frightened filmgoers scrambling to flee, police said Monday. Detectives with the Albuquerque Police Department filed charges Monday in Metropolitan Court against 19-year-old Enrique Padilla in connection with the Sunday evening shooting at a cinema complex next to an interstate highway. Padilla was at a hospital under guard Monday evening while being treated for a gunshot wound, police spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said. It was unclear whether Padilla had a legal representative who could speak on his behalf.Witnesses told police that a man later identified as Padilla arrived at the theater with his girlfriend and found another couple in at least one of their reserved seats. Theater staff attempted to help resolve the dispute, but it escalated with a hurled bucket of popcorn, shoving and then gunfire, according to police.Michael Tenorio, 52, was shot ...