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Trump moves to block California electric cars program

US President Donald Trump on Thursday signed resolutions blocking California’s landmark efforts to phase out gas-powered cars in favor of electric vehicles, a move the state immediately contested in court.Trump’s action, a rebuke of Democratic climate change policies, comes after the Republican-led Congress revoked the state’s waiver allowing it to set more stringent regulations for cars.California had planned to end the sale of gasoline-only vehicles by 2035, among other ambitious efforts.During the signing ceremony at the White House, Trump lashed out at the state’s bid as “a disaster for this country” and said the resolutions he was signing would save the industry from “destruction.”California swiftly sued the Trump administration over the resolutions, with Attorney General Rob Bonta saying: “The President’s divisive, partisan agenda is jeopardizing our lives, our economy and our environment.””It’s reckless, it’s illegal, and because of it, we’ll be seeing the Trump administration in court again for the 26th time,” he added.California, the nation’s wealthiest state with around 40 million people, has long used the waiver in the Clean Air Act to set its own emissions standards as it tries to mitigate some of the worst air pollution in the country.The size of the auto market in the state — and the fact that several other states follow its lead — means automakers frequently use its standards nationwide.Trump’s move also came as he clashes with California over immigration enforcement.California Governor Gavin Newsom has accused the president of acting like a tyrant over his use of the military to control small-scale protests in Los Angeles.- Environmental concerns – Trump’s action was condemned by environmental groups who say the rules are key for easing pollution.And Newsom recently argued that rolling back the state’s EV ambitions would boost China’s position on the market.While China is a manufacturing hub for such vehicles globally, the United States is a net importer of them, he said in a May statement.This is despite the United States being home to technologies that have pioneered the clean car industry, he noted.Trump has repeatedly criticized subsidies to encourage the EV industry despite significant federal funding allocated to projects in Republican districts — where thousands of jobs are expected to be created.He took aim at the sector as part of his flurry of executive orders on his first day in office this January in a bid to ensure what he called a “level” playing field for gasoline-powered motors.

Armement terrestre : intensification du partenariat franco-belge

Le ministre français des Armées Sébastien Lecornu et son homologue belge Théo Francken ont annoncé jeudi un partenariat renforcé entre les deux pays en matière de fabrication d’armement terrestre, lors d’une visite du site KNDS de Roanne.”On va basculer dans autre chose pour aller beaucoup plus loin avec un accord stratégique, militaire, de gouvernement à gouvernement”, a déclaré M. Lecornu lors d’un point presse commun après avoir visité les ateliers roannais du site de KNDS, où sont assemblés des véhicules blindés du programme Scorpion ainsi que les canons automoteurs Caesar.La France et la Belgique ont noué en 2018 un partenariat baptisé CaMo (capacité motorisée) visant à doter les deux armées de Terre de matériels terrestres et doctrines semblables.”On va entremêler davantage nos destins en matière d’industrie terrestre, plutôt que de se faire concurrence”, a ajouté le ministre.Il a souligné “la nécessité d’accroitre l’interopérabilité des équipements utilisés par nos deux armées qui chacune ont donné à l’Ukraine des matériels dont on s’est aperçu qu’ils ne fonctionnaient plus entre eux, car chaque pays a développé ses propres systèmes dans les années 90 et 2000″.”Il y a une guerre en Ukraine et on doit collaborer plus ensemble. Il y a une crise de mariage avec les Américains, une crise de mariage approfondie pour l’instant. Alors on doit vraiment chercher une solution européenne”, a pour sa part déclaré Théo Francken.”Je pense que les Américains vont se retirer pas à pas de l’Europe et ils disent +bon, c’est votre problème+, et comme c’est notre problème on doit collaborer encore plus. C’est quelque chose qu’on a fait depuis des années et on doit intensifier ça encore”, a plaidé le ministre belge.

Trump ouvre un nouveau front avec la Californie, au nom des voitures thermiques

Le président américain Donald Trump a signé jeudi une résolution pour mettre fin à la politique ambitieuse en faveur des voitures électriques de la Californie, que l’Etat démocrate défendra devant la justice.”Nous sauvons officiellement l’industrie automobile américaine de la destruction”, a déclaré le chef de l’Etat lors d’un évènement organisé à la Maison Blanche.La résolution avait été votée par le Congrès en mai pour empêcher la Californie d’interdire la vente de voitures thermiques neufs en 2035, au profit de véhicules bas carbone.L’Etat de l’Ouest américain a rapidement saisi la justice pour défendre un dispositif dérogatoire via lequel il fixe des normes environnementales plus strictes que la législation fédérale.La politique du président américain “compromet nos vies, notre économie et notre environnement”, a reproché le procureur général de Californie, Rob Bonta.”C’est irresponsable, illégal”, a-t-il poursuivi. Etat le plus peuplé et le plus riche des Etats-Unis, la Californie à majorité démocrate a été érigée en épouvantail par Donald Trump.Celui-ci a récemment ordonné le déploiement des soldats à Los Angeles, contre l’avis des autorités locales, après des manifestations contre sa politique migratoire musclée.Le gouverneur de la Californie Gavin Newsom, vu comme un potentiel candidat pour la présidentielle de 2028, dénonce une dérive autoritaire.- “Gauchistes” -Dans un long discours ponctué de digressions, Donald Trump a affirmé que “sous la précédente administration, l’Etat fédéral a laissé à des gauchistes californiens le pouvoir dictatorial de contrôler l’avenir de toute l’industrie automobile”.Il estime que la réglementation californienne impose aux constructeurs de tout le pays une transformation à marche forcée, ceux-ci ne pouvant se passer du plus grand marché du pays.Selon lui, “l’affreux plan” californien “aurait mis fin au moteur thermique, que la plupart des gens préfèrent jusqu’ici”. “Si vous voulez de l’électrique, vous pouvez acheter des voitures électriques” mais “on doit vous laisser le choix”, a-t-il ajouté.- L’Ouest pionnier -Le parlement de Californie avait légiféré en 2022 pour imposer que tous les véhicules neufs vendus dans l’Etat soient à “zéro émission” polluante à partir de 2035.Une ambition partagée par une dizaine d’autres Etats démocrates, mais contestée par le président Donald Trump et son Parti républicain qui dénoncent ce qu’ils estiment être un diktat pour l’ensemble des Etats-Unis.La Californie compte le plus grand nombre de voitures électriques du pays et bénéficie depuis plus d’un demi-siècle de dérogations qui lui permettent de fixer des normes environnementales plus strictes que la législation fédérale.L’Etat de l’Ouest américain a ainsi poussé de longue date les constructeurs automobiles à fabriquer des voitures respectant ses normes d’émission et vendues partout aux Etats-Unis. La signature de la résolution par le président faisait peu de doute: le milliardaire républicain, climatosceptique notoire, a fait campagne en 2024 sur sa volonté de forer du pétrole à tout-va. Il a aussi abandonné l’objectif fixé par son prédécesseur démocrate Joe Biden de vendre 50% de voitures électriques aux Etats-Unis d’ici 2030.Le président américain a par ailleurs affirmé jeudi à la Maison Blanche qu’il pourrait relever “dans un futur proche” la surtaxe qu’il a mise en place sur les voitures importées aux Etats-Unis, actuellement de 25%.

Trump ouvre un nouveau front avec la Californie, au nom des voitures thermiques

Miracle: one passenger reportedly survived India plane crash

The miracle report of a lone survivor from a London-bound passenger plane that crashed Thursday in the Indian city of Ahmedabad with 242 on board offered a glimmer of hope.Indian rescue teams with sniffer dogs clawed through smouldering wreckage through the night searching for clues for what had caused the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner bound for London’s Gatwick Airport to explode in a blazing fireball soon after takeoff from the western city of Ahmedabad.Bodies from Air India’s flight 171 were lifted out of the torn fuselage, as well as being pulled out of the charred buildings of the medical staff hostel that the airplane smashed into, killing several there too.The death toll currently stands at 260, police said.But hours after police said that there “appears to be no survivor in the crash”, officials reported the initially seemingly impossible account that one man had walked out alive.”One survivor is confirmed,” Dhananjay Dwivedi, principal secretary of Gujarat state’s health department, told AFP.The person was being treated in hospital, he added without further details.India’s Home Minister Amit Shah, who visited the crash site and then the hospital, said he was “pained beyond words by the tragic plane crash” in Ahmedabad, the main city in Gujarat state, where Shah is a lawmaker.But he also told reporters he had heard the “good news of the survivor” and was speaking to them “after meeting him”.Indian media widely reported the survivor had been sitting in seat 11A, after videos shared on social media showed a man — in a bloodied t-shirt and limping, but walking towards an ambulance.He shared a boarding card that named him as Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, a 40-year-old British national, one of 53 UK citizens on board.AFP was not able to confirm the reports, but the BBC spoke to his cousin in the city of Leicester, Ajay Valgi, who reported that Ramesh had called his family to say he was “fine”.Britain’s Press Association news agency also spoke to his brother, Nayan Kumar Ramesh, 27, also in Leicester.”He said, I have no idea how I exited the plane”, his brother told PA.- Heartbreaking loss -But while Ramesh’s reported survival offered a chance of hope, stories also flooded in of heartbreaking loss: elderly parents going to visit children in Britain, or family returning home.Air India is organising relief flights — one from the capital New Delhi and another from financial hub Mumbai — to Ahmedabad for “the next of kin of passengers and Air India staff”, the information ministry said in a statement.They will have to take part in the grim task of identifying the bodies, many of which were reported to have been badly burned.The plane, which was full of fuel as it took off for a long-haul flight to London, exploded into a burst of orange flame, videos of the crash showed.Dwivedi, the health official, said DNA collection facilities had been set up at BJ Medical College in Ahmedabad.”DNA testing arrangements have been made”, he told reporters. “Families and close relatives of the flight passengers, especially their parents and children, are requested to submit their samples at the location so that the victims can be identified at the earliest.”burs-pjm/sst

Trump calls on Israel not to strike as Iran defiant before talks

US President Donald Trump called Thursday on Israel not to attack Iran, saying a deal on its nuclear program remained close, but Tehran defiantly vowed to increase its output of enriched uranium ahead of new talks.Trump acknowledged that an Israeli strike on Iran “may very well happen,” although he stopped short of calling a strike imminent, and said the risk of “massive conflict” led the United States to draw down staff in the region.”We are fairly close to a pretty good agreement,” Trump told reporters.Asked about his discussions with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said: “I don’t want them going in, because I think it would blow it.”Trump quickly added: “Might help it actually, but it also could blow it.”Trump’s Middle East pointman Steve Witkoff is set to hold a sixth round of talks with Iran on Sunday in Oman, which has mediated.Trump again described himself as a man of peace.”I’d love to avoid the conflict. Iran’s going to have to negotiate a little bit tougher — meaning they’re going to have to give us some things that they’re not willing to give us right now,” he said.- US troops in crosshairs -Iran has ramped up rhetorical pressure before the talks, including with a threat to strike American bases in the region if the negotiations break down and conflict erupts.”If the talks fail, the risk of military escalation becomes much more immediate,” said Hamidreza Azizi, a visiting fellow at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs.The United States on Wednesday said it was reducing embassy staff in Iraq — long a zone of proxy conflict with Iran.Israel, which counts on US military and diplomatic support, sees the cleric-run state in Tehran as an existential threat and hit Iranian air defenses last year.Netanyahu has vowed less restraint since the unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Tehran-backed Hamas, which triggered the massive Israeli offensive in Gaza.Israel again called for global action after the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) accused Iran of non-compliance with its obligations. The United States and other Western countries, along with Israel, have repeatedly accused Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, which it has repeatedly denied.The IAEA’s board of governors adopted a resolution condemning Iran’s “non-compliance” with its nuclear obligations under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), carried by 19 votes in favour, out of 35 in total, diplomats said.The resolution could lay the groundwork for European countries to invoke a “snapback” mechanism, which expires in October, that would reinstate UN sanctions eased under a 2015 nuclear deal negotiated by then US president Barack Obama.- Iran says move ‘extremist’ -Iran’s nuclear chief, Mohammad Eslami, slammed the resolution as “extremist” and blamed Israeli influence.Iran, he said, had upheld its commitments under the NPT but rolled back adherence to the 2015 deal after Trump withdrew the United States during his first term as president and imposed sweeping sanctions.”They can’t expect us to fulfill them without them (Western countries) honoring any of their commitments,” Eslami said.In response to the resolution, Iran said it would launch a new enrichment center in a secure location.Iran would also replace “all of these first-generation machines with sixth-generation advanced machines” at the Fordo uranium enrichment plant, said Behrouz Kamalvandi, spokesman of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran.This means “our production of enriched material will increase significantly,” he added.Eslami said enrichment would begin at the new “invulnerable” site when machines were installed.Iran currently enriches uranium to 60 percent, far above the 3.67-percent limit set in the 2015 deal and close, though still short, of the 90 percent needed for a nuclear warhead.Following Iran’s vow on uranium, the European Union called on it “to show restraint.”Iran’s UN representative Amir Saeid Iravani has said Tehran will consider “proportionate responses” if the snapback mechanism is triggered — including “starting the process of withdrawal” from the NPT.