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Germany warns travellers about America's ICE problem, police in Berlin arrest an alleged Hamas operative and Rheinmetall, OHB want to make a Starlink rival for the Bundeswehr

Germany warns travellers about America's ICE problem, police in Berlin arrest an alleged Hamas operative and Rheinmetall, OHB want to make a Starlink rival for the Bundeswehr

This week, America began its vacation in earnest from the world. And the world is acting a bit like "Daddy" is away on business – only that business seems to be a "Melania" movie premier? Further, some housecleaning happened with Gregory Bovino, the public face of various immigration removal operations that have descended into chaos across America. He was sent back to where he came from on the US-Mexico border. Bovino begs the question of how much rage the average person in average roles has bottled up that will show itself if it is allowed to be unleashed—in part because he showed so little imagination.

With America on vacay, gold hit a new record high above $5,000 an ounce, The Financial Times reports this week. Also on the up, the Swiss franc soared to new heights against the greenback (item and link below). While America is out to lunch, gone fishing, on vacation – pick your euphemism, but please be kind to the language – Europe is on a bit of a kick I will call the sovereign illusion.

In America, we have people in the hinterlands who too believe themselves to be "sovereign citizens". All their illusion really amounts to is a pretense until reality shows itself, whether through the courts or interactions with law enforcement officers or the tax man or parking tickets, mortgages, credit card bills, etc, coming due. Having lost the internet era and been on an extended vacation from history itself, Europe too must be summoned to, well, get real and get serious.

In Europe, beyond the self-serious neutral countries of the Alps, seriousness means security and defense and that means NATO. Mark Rutte, the Secretary General of the vaunted transatlantic alliance, delivered the reality check absolutely no one seems to want to hear these days, namely that Europe cannot defend itself without the US, Politico reports. That's a hard sell but a truth bomb on a continent where even Germany is talking about the bomb these days, with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz exploring the possibility of a European nuclear umbrella with other nations, "including Britain and France, the only European powers which have a nuclear arsenal," Reuters reports.

My god, what have we Americans done? NATO exists for a reason! The first Secretary General of NATO Hastings Ismay, First Baron Ismay said it and it holds to this day: NATO exists to keep "the Russians out, the Americans in and the Germans down."  We have not even discussed the trash talking of American allies in Afghanistan by none other than President Donald Trump, Deutsche Welle reports, with even Germany's Defense Minister Boris Pistorius firing back. We have made a mess, dear Europeans, and talk of a German bomb is one possible outcome of our poor choices.

But here in the Alps, the concerns are far more parochial. Swiss armaments producers are big mad that they are being shut out of the big spending happening in Europe now on defense, Swissinfo reports. And the reason is because Switzerland has opted over and over to block the transfer of older munitions and materiel in other nation's arsenals to Ukraine because it is a country at war. Yes, you read that right, you can buy it but you cannot use it when it is useful for collective security. Needless to say, the free-for-the-Swiss US nuclear security blanket for Europe has them covered, too. 

Shutting one's self out of the big clubs in defense and security has real consequences on the human development of a country's officers and defense establishment. The value of having colleagues from other nations who share in your fight is indescribable for those who have not experienced it. They do not know what they do not know. It's something to fill in that known unknown corner of the Rumsfeld quadrant.

Welcome to the new Alpine Security Monitor! You can subscribe (and become a paid subscriber!) for weekly updates on security and geopolitics as it concerns the Alpine region, namely Austria, Czechia, France, Germany, Italy, Slovenia and Switzerland (ok, little Liechtenstein and Monaco too when merited). If this was forwarded to you, welcome! Complaints, comments, questions and unsolicited rants can be directed to amanda.rivkin@securitydialogue.org. Now for the week that was.

 

BERLIN, GERMANY – Germany issues US travel advisory over 'violent clashes' involving ICE

  • Fox News reports Tuesday Germany's Federal Foreign Office issued an updated travel advisory for the US due to "demonstrations/clashes with the migration and security authorities".
  • In part, the warning read, "In Minneapolis and other cities, demonstrations sometimes lead to violent clashes with migration and security authorities". The German government advised its citizens in the US to "behave calmly and follow the instructions of the authorities and local security forces."
  • The advisory also notes the "domestic political situation" and cites "an increased risk of politically motivated violence."

 

BERLIN, GERMANY – Police arrest alleged Hamas operative at Brandenburg Airport

  • The BBC and The Jerusalem Post report German police arrested a 36-year-old Lebanese national named only as Mohammad S., according to strict German privacy laws, who is alleged to be a Hamas operative working on planning attacks in Europe, after he arrived from Beirut at Berlin's Brandenburg Airport.
  • German authorities believe Mohammad S. was working with another operative arrested last October, Abed Al G., who was working with two others who were also detained while allegedly planning "attacks on Jewish and Israeli institutions." Authorities believe Mohammad S. was "supplying weapons and ammunition for Hamas-linked terror plots".
  • At the time of those arrests, German news weekly Der Spiegel also reported police searched properties in Leipzig and Oberhausen.

 

DÜSSELDORF & BREMEN, GERMANY – Rheinmetall, OHB in talks to produce Starlink rival

  • The Financial Times reports Monday "Arms group Rheinmetall and satellite provider OHB are in talks to launch a joint bid to an equivalent to Elon Musk's Starlink internet service for the German armed forces."
  • Talks "are in the early stages" but would give the two companies "a slice of Berlin's €35bn," or $41.5 billion, "budget for military space technology". Shares of OHB shot up 28% after The Financial Times published its report.
  • Currently Elon Musk's SpaceX produces a Starlink version for defense and intelligence clients called Starshield, "But many countries, nervous of relying on Musk or the US, want to develop their own secure and sovereign networks."

 

MEDITERRANEAN SEA, FRANCE TERRITORIAL WATERS – Russian shadow fleet ship seized

  • The BBC reports last Friday that the French Navy with the assistance of allies including the UK boarded the Grinch, "an oil tanker in the Mediterranean suspected of being part of Russia's sanctions-busting 'shadow fleet'" the day before.
  • French President Emmanuel Macron said the Grinch was "subject to international sanctions and suspected of flying a false flag." Under a Comoros flag, the Grinch had travelled "from the Arctic port of Murmansk in northern Russia when it was intercepted". The Russian Embassy in Paris said it had not been informed of the seizure of the Grinch.
  • The UK has sanctions on 544 Russian shadow fleet vessels and S&P Global financial intelligence estimates 20% of the world's oil tankers is smuggling oil from sanctioned countries.

 

PARIS, FRANCE – French lawmakers ban social media for youths, cell phones in schools

  • Agence France Presse reports Tuesday that French lawmakers approved a bill banning minors under 15 from using social media.
  • By a vote of 130 to 21 the lower national assembly "adopted the text"  during "a lengthy overnight session from Monday to Tuesday." The bill must now pass the upper house, the Senate.
  • The proposed law "also provides for a ban on mobile phones in high schools".

 

PARIS, FRANCE – France to roll out 'sovereign platform' amid concerns about US tech

  • Euronews reports France announced Monday "it will roll out the Visio platform across all government departments by 2027" and "replace the American platforms Microsoft Teams and Zoom with its own domestically developed video conferencing platform".
  • Visio is part of the "Suit Numérique plan" for "a digital ecosystem of sovereign tools". All of these tools are for use by public sector employees and will not be available to the private sector.
  • Concerns about "control over critical digital infrastructure" have mounted in Europe as disillusionment with aspects of the agenda of the current US administration have grown, most recently with the flare up over the threat of the use of military force to seize Greenland, a territory of Denmark.

 

BORDEAUX, FRANCE – Criminal probe of Nestlé opened after baby's death

  • Swissinfo reports last Friday that the public prosecutor's office in Bordeaux opened a criminal probe into Nestlé "Following the death of a newborn baby who had consumed a Nestlé infant formula".
  • Renaud Gaudeul, the public prosecutor in Bordeaux, said "the child had been fed an artificial infant formula of the Guigoz brand after being discharged from the maternity hospital between January 5 and 7", adding, "The formula had been recalled owing to possible contamination with the bacterium Bacillus cereus".
  • The French Ministries of Agriculture and Health said in a statement last Thursday that an "'extensive, still dynamic' health warning was in place." Another company, Lactallis, also announced a recall last week with that recall and the Nestlé recall being tied to "a single manufacturer in China."

 

BERN, SWITZERLAND – Swiss franc surges to highest rate against dollar in a decade

  • The Financial Times reports Wednesday that "The Swiss franc has surged to its strongest level against the US dollar in more than a decade," in what currency market traders are calling the last "reliable" safe haven currency as "political risks drive investors to look for alternatives to the US currency."
  • The Swiss franc traded at 0.77 against the US dollar Wednesday "after a 14 per cent gain last year".
  • The dollar was pushed down by "a political crisis over the future of Greenland last week".

 

BERN, SWITZERLAND – VAT tax raised to fund defense

  • Politico reports Wednesday that Switzerland will raise its VAT tax "to boost defense spending."
  • The Federal Council cited a "deteriorating geopolitical situation" in the hopes of "substantially" increasing Swiss defense capabilities. Critically, "The additional revenues will be allocated to an armament fund that will also have borrowing capacity."
  • Wait for it, the grim facts and figures: Switzerland spends 0.7% of GDP on defense. According to Reuters, "Switzerland plans to inject an additional 31 billion Swiss francs ($40.4 billion) into defence and security spending starting from 2029 and will increase sales tax for a decade to fund it". Currently, "spending on the military is not currently scheduled to reach 1% of gross domestic product until 2032."

 

CRANS-MONTANA, SWITZERLAND – Italy recalls ambassador over bar owner's release

  • Reuters reports Saturday that Rome recalled its ambassador to Switzerland following the release the day before of Jacques Moretti, the owner of Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, the site of a lethal bar fire that claimed the lives of 40 mostly young people and injured 100 more, on bond.
  • Moretti had been detained on January 9 because he was deemed a flight risk and released last Friday, a move that came under heavy criticism in both Switzerland and Italy. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called Moretti's release "an affront to the memory of the victims," and added that it was "an insult to their families". Six of the dead were Italian nationals and an additional 10 Italians were injured in the blaze.
  • Italy's ambassador was instructed prior to departing to contact Beatrice Pilloud, the chief prosecutor for the canton of Valais, to convey "strong indignation" over Moretti's release in exchange for 200,000 Swiss francs ($260,500) and a commitment to daily checks at the police station.

 

BERN, SWITZERLAND – Police search offices of companies that collect referenda signatures

  • Swissinfo reports Wednesday that "the Office of the Attorney General and the Swiss Federal Office of Police (Fedpol) carried out several searches on companies involved in collecting signatures" for the country's vaunted referenda on various matters and "Several people were interviewed" in the process.
  • Searches occurred in "the offices of several organisations that collect paid signatures in French- and German-speaking parts of Switzerland".
  • Several cases were opened "following a series of criminal complaints" dating back to October 2022 and cases of "around 30,000 allegedly falsified signatures linked to some twenty nationwide popular initiatives" with new reports that "continue to come in."

 

ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – Politician who shot at Mary and Jesus given suspended sentence

  • Swissinfo and the AP report Wednesday that Sanija Ameti, a "former Zurich Liberal Green Party parliamentarian", was handed "a suspended sentence of sixty daily fines of CHF59 ($65) each" after an incident in September 2024 "when she fired shots at a religious image and later shared photos of it online."
  • Ameti "declined to speak throughout the proceedings." The Zurich district court issued the fine for "disturbing freedom of religion and worship".
  • The incident led her to "quit the party after it launched expulsion proceedings over the alleged offences." She is not seeking reelection.

 

MONTELIBRETTI, ITALY – First batch of Lynx fighting vehicles arrive

  • Defense News reports Wednesday that "The Italian army has taken delivery of four Lynx fighting vehicles from Rheinmetall," which are "the first batch" of "a massive, planned order of 1,050 vehicles."
  • The Lynx fighting vehicles "were unveiled at the army's Montelibretti test range outside Rome" before an audience that included the defense minister, the chief of defense and managers from Rheinmetall and Leonardo, which are partners in the program.
  • In a speech, Björn Bernhard, "Rheinmetall's European vehicles head", said, "Europe remains fragmented with too many systems, too many supply chains, too little industrial depth." Bernhard called the situation "unsustainable" and "dangerous".

 

MEDITERRANEAN SEA, ITALIAN TERRITORIAL WATERS – Hundreds dead following cyclone

  • The Guardian reports Monday as "Italian authorities estimate 380 may have drowned last week" while attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea from North Africa to Europe during a cyclone that ravaged the sea and those in it.
  • While "Cyclone Harry battered southern Italy and Malta," the Maltese authorities confirmed at least one shipwreck involving 50 people whose lives were lost and one survivor while the Italian Coast Guard said "380 others who set sail from Tunisia during the cyclone, which generated huge waves in the Mediterranean, might also have drowned. Eight vessels that left from the port city of Sfax have not been recovered.
  • In the aftermath of the cyclone, People has "Harrowing footage" which shows the town of Niscemi in Sicily "hanging at the edge of a cliff" as a result of a "severe landslide in the area." Corriere della Sera has helicopter footage.

 

And finally, to bring this week full circle…

 

MILAN, ITALY – Media and political kerfuffle over ICE division's Olympics deployment

  • The AP reports Wednesday that "News that a unit of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement would be present during the upcoming Winter Games has set off concern and confusion in Italy."
  • In general, "people have expressed outrage" however, "Homeland Security Investigations, a unit within ICE that focuses on cross-border crimes, frequently sends its officers to overseas events like the Olympics to assist with security." It's a separate arm from Enforcement and Removal Operations which can be seen in footage captured by US citizens on their cell phones at various times of day marauding through the streets of cities and towns across America in an attempt to remove immigrants from the country. Ergo, "That distinction, however, wasn't immediately clear to local media Tuesday."
  • Milan's mayor, Giuseppe Sala, said ICE would not be welcome in the city, calling it "a militia that kills". The Interior Ministry, however, said later that "HIS investigators would be stationed at a control room at the U.S. Consulate in Milan".

 

 

Stay safe and something about better angels!

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