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More Americans say the United States has provided too much aid to war-torn Ukraine, a shift in opinion due in large part to a growing partisan divide, according to the Pew Research Center’s latest polling.
As Russia’s invasion approaches its first anniversary, Americans largely back some sort of aid, but support for the Biden administration’s approach is fading, especially among Republicans, according to the survey released Tuesday. The poll found that about a quarter of Americans now say the United States is providing too much support to Ukraine, up six percentage points since September and 19 points since March, shortly after the war began. Meanwhile, 31 percent say it is giving the right amount. One-fifth of Americans would like to see the United States give Ukraine additional assistance, according to the poll conducted Jan. 18-24 among 5,152 U.S. adults. Over 20 percent said they were not sure. . ." READ MORE
Antiwar protesters demonstrate outside of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC., U.S., December 21, 2022. /CFP
"A growing portion of Americans think the United States has provided too much support to Ukraine, as the Biden administration and other Western allies ramp up their backing of the country in the Russia-Ukraine conflict in recent weeks, according to a new Pew Research Center poll.
More than a quarter (26 percent) of Americans said the U.S. is providing too much support to Ukraine, an increase of six percentage points since last September and of 19 points since March 2022, shortly after the conflict began last year, the survey revealed on Tuesday.
"While 31 percent say it is giving the right amount and 20 percent would like to see the U.S. give Ukraine additional assistance," said the poll, conducted January 18 to 24 among 5,152 U.S. adults.
"This shift in opinion is mostly attributable to the growing share of Republicans who say the U.S. is providing too much support to Ukraine. Today, 40 percent of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents hold this view, up from 32 percent in the fall and much higher than the 9 percent who held this view in March of last year," said the survey.
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The U.S. has provided billions of dollars to Ukraine to support its military since the Russia-Ukraine conflict began in February 2022. And it is readying over $2 billion worth of military aid for Ukraine, including "longer-range rockets for the first time as well as other munitions and weapons," two U.S. officials told Reuters on Tuesday."
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U.S. readies $2 billion-plus Ukraine aid package with longer-range weapons
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The aid is expected to be announced as soon as this week, the officials said. It is also expected to include support equipment for Patriot air defense systems, precision-guided munitions and Javelin anti-tank weapons, they added.
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The White House declined to comment. The contents and size of aid packages can shift until they are signed by the president.
The U.S. has sent approximately $27.2 billion worth of security assistance to Ukraine since Russia-Ukraine conflict began in February 2022."
(Cover: Ukrainian servicemen adjust a mortar tube at the battlefront in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, January 31, 2023. /CFP)
More Americans say the United States has provided too much aid to war-torn Ukraine, a shift in opinion due in large part to a growing partisan divide, according to the Pew Research Center’s latest polling.
As Russia’s invasion approaches its first anniversary, Americans largely back some sort of aid, but support for the Biden administration’s approach is fading, especially among Republicans, according to the survey released Tuesday. The poll found that about a quarter of Americans now say the United States is providing too much support to Ukraine, up six percentage points since September and 19 points since March, shortly after the war began. Meanwhile, 31 percent say it is giving the right amount. One-fifth of Americans would like to see the United States give Ukraine additional assistance, according to the poll conducted Jan. 18-24 among 5,152 U.S. adults. Over 20 percent said they were not sure.
The share of Americans who believe the United States has provided too much support through economic assistance and weapons is greater among Republicans, 40 percent, even as GOP leaders remain divided. Before becoming House speaker, Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) warned that a GOP-controlled House would oppose more aid for Ukraine, a signaling of the “America First” mantra that has galvanized former president Donald Trump’s base despite the aggression of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, other Republican leaders, such as Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), have remained steadfast in their support of Ukraine.
“The United States and our friends and our partners have done enough to prevent Ukraine from losing, … but we’ve not yet done enough to help Ukraine actually win,” McConnell said in remarks on the Senate floor last week. “A protracted stalemate is neither in Ukraine’s interest nor ours.”
About 6 in 10 Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents say either the United States is providing about the right amount of support — 40 percent — or not providing enough — 23 percent. Only 15 percent of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents say the United States is providing too much, up from 5 percent last March.
The latest polling comes a week after President Biden announced his latest tranche of support, 31 premier battle tanks — the M1 Abrams. Congress has approved more than $110 billion in aid since the war began last February.
Biden
has vowed to support Ukraine “as long as it takes” amid the first
conventional land war in Europe since World War II. Pew’s poll found
that 4 in 10 adults approve of his administration’s response to the
invasion. . ." READ MORE
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"...Fed Chair Jay Powell insisted that the rate must still go higher, albeit at a slower pace than last year, to vanquish inflation. He won’t think about halting rate hikes yet, let alone entertain the notion of when the Fed might actually start cutting rates from their highest levels in more than 15 years.
“It would be very premature to declare victory,” he said.
Yet the financial markets have priced in the start of rate cuts by fall, and based on the market action Wednesday afternoon, Mr. Powell’s tough talk did nothing to dissuade them. Not only do the markets not share the Fed’s caution about declaring success in reversing inflation, they’ve moved past it to the next battle – against an impending recession.
And it seems the more markets are willing to talk about the timing of rate cuts, the more central bank leaders are pushing back with their “hey, not so fast” rhetoric. . . READ MORE
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U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell says the rate must still go higher, albeit at a slower pace than last year, to vanquish inflation.JONATHAN ERNST/Reuters
As interest rates approach their peak, an intriguing stand-off has emerged between North America’s major central banks and financial markets.
The U.S. Federal Reserve and Bank of Canada seem determined not to allow their gaze to drift to the future. The financial markets are already there. And each seems increasingly determined to sway the thinking of the other.
The difference of viewpoint was apparent in the Fed’s rate announcement and news conference Wednesday, as the bank raised its policy rate by another quarter of a percentage point, to a range of 4.5 per cent to 4.75 per cent.
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Urbix finds itself increasingly at the center of important conversations around the future of energy in the United States.
“Globally we’re seeing a trend of the electrification of everything,” says Nico Cuevas, CEO and Chairman of Urbix, a company that has found itself growing into world demand for the product they have helped revolutionize.
Cuevas points out that roughly 22 percent of the lithium-ion battery in an electric vehicle is made up of purified and processed graphite. At present, no graphite is mined in the United States and at least 85 percent of natural purified graphite comes from China. Until now.
Urbix’s proprietary methods for the purification and spheroidization of natural graphite are revolutionary and steeped in a genesis of clean and green technology, placing them at the head of a growing field.
Mesa-based graphite processing company Urbix Inc. says it’s closer to establishing a $280 million production facility now that it has signed a joint development agreement with South Korea-based global electric vehicle battery maker SK On (SKO) Co. Ltd. to develop materials for advanced lithium-ion batteries.
Under the deal, Urbix will work with SKO on industrialized anode materials that will supply the battery maker’s American gigafactories.
✓ Urbix was founded in 2014 and describes itself as the only U.S. company producing natural battery grade graphite for use in electric vehicles and battery storage systems. It says that its partnership with SKO will accelerate its plans to establish a commercial anode production facility. Plans call for producing 28,500 metric tons of anode products yearly — enough to power 350,000 high-performance EVs — by 2025.
The Mesa company said through a spokesperson that it hasn’t decided yet where its production facility will be located but that it hopes to secure a site by the end of March, and places both inside and outside Arizona are being considered. Urbix currently employs 55 people in Arizona and said it hopes to hire at least another 30 over the next 12 months.
The partnership with SKO helps reduce the need for EV battery-grade graphite from China.
“Working with such a renowned battery manufacturer means that we can accelerate our production efforts, and more effectively address the supply of graphite,” Urbix CEO Nico Cuevas said in a statement. “By utilizing Urbix’s innovative technologies, we can shift more of the refinement and production of battery-grade graphite to the US, a mission we remain committed to.”
Urbix says its proprietary graphite processing system uses 10% of the energy, 6% of the acid and 7% of the time needed by existing processes. The Mesa company also said it eliminates the use of hydrofluoric and hydrochloric acids and has yields that are more than twice the industry standard."
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✓ SKO is the lithium-ion battery subsidiary of SK Innovation. It has two battery manufacturing plants in Georgia. It also has a joint venture with Ford Motor Co., called BlueOval SK, to build three more battery plants in the Southeast that will go online in 2025. That ramp-up in U.S. production means more U.S. supplies are needed.
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✓ The deal also helps SKO benefit under provisions of the federal Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA, which uses tax credits to encourage domestic energy production and manufacturing using domestic supplies. The IRA also aims to reduce carbon emissions by about 40% before 2030.
“This agreement is meaningful in increasing the possibility of securing eco-friendly and high-performance anode active materials for use in SK On’s U.S. plants,” Sun Heeyoung, SK On’s vice president in charge of advanced research, in a statement. “SK On will continue to work to develop anode materials that can maximize battery performance.”
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Urbix, Inc. CEO, Chairman & co-founder, Nico Cuevas (right) greets Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) at the Urbix pilot plant at Mesa, Arizona.
On July 9th, U.S. Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) toured Urbix, Inc. in Mesa, Arizona, the only environmentally friendly U.S.-based processor of natural graphite in the country. During his visit, Senator Kelly met with the Urbix leadership team and workers at the facility. The tour showcased Urbix’s proprietary methods and technology for purifying and spheroidizing natural graphite, an essential component in lithium-ion batteries. Senator Kelly and the Urbix leadership team also discussed graphite’s increasing importance to the country’s economic future and national security interests, as well as the environmental benefits of processing natural graphite in the U.S. instead of China.
America faces intense competition from geopolitical rivals to secure reliable and sustained access to critical minerals like graphite.
From left: Urbix Director of Operations, Luis Olaguibel; CEO & Chairman, Nico Cuevas, Executive Vice-President, Anthony J. Parkinson; and Senator Mark Kelly (D-AZ) tour the Urbix pilot plant.
“We are fortunate to have leaders like Senator Kelly who are focused on securing supply chains for critical minerals to strengthen the country’s economic future and national security,” said Nico Cuevas, CEO, and Chairman of Urbix Inc. “We are in a competition to lead the global economy and the energy transition that is happening through increased demand for advanced batteries. It is not too late to make the investments and policy changes required to encourage innovation and investment in the industries that will make U.S. companies more competitive in the global market.”
Senator Kelly is also working to address climate change and is a champion of research and development to identify technologies that reduce emissions and make renewable energy more cost-effective. Following his visit, Senator Kelly expressed his support for graphite processing’s critical role in building the 21st century economy.
“Arizona is home to the high tech workforce needed to enhance the supply chain and help our nation achieve its renewable energy goals,” said Senator Mark Kelly. “Homegrown companies like Urbix are innovators in the important effort to maintain American energy independence and break our reliance on China for critical minerals. By making investments in infrastructure, including electric vehicle infrastructure, and in parts of the technology supply chain including microchips, we can continue to grow Arizona’s tech leadership.”
Cuevas added: “We want to thank Senator Kelly for his visit and support for American companies powering the future economy. We look forward to continuing our work to ensure Arizona will be a national leader in driving America’s energy transition. ◊
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Every week political cartoonists throughout the country and across the political spectrum apply their ink-stained skills to capture the fo...
