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Merz meets Trump, the NAC approves the new SACEUR and Germany is going to need a lot more troops

Merz meets Trump, the NAC approves the new SACEUR and Germany is going to need a lot more troops

Welcome to the new Alpine Security Monitor. This project is only in its pilot stage at present. However, you can sign up and subscribe 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). 

Currently, three tiers of subscriptions are offered: the free version (sign up below), member and warrior, available already for those who might stumble onto this site as we test what works and what does not.

WASHINGTON D.C., USA – Merz meets Trump, explains Nazism was a bad thing for Europe

  • German Chancellor Friedrich Merz was at the White House on Thursday to meet with US President Donald Trump who repeatedly brought up the Nazis and called D-Day, the anniversary of which is 81 years ago today, "not a pleasant day for you." The Bulwark has the video.
  • Merz explained in fact the liberation of the Western half of the European continent from Hitler and Nazism was actually a pretty good thing for European security.
  • Merz also made clear that he thinks the US has a big role to play in helping to bring about the end of Russia's war against Ukraine.

 

MONS, BELGIUM – North Atlantic Council approves nomination of new SACEUR

  • A terse NATO press release noted that the North Atlantic Council (NAC) has approved the nomination of Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewich as Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR). Grynkewich currently serves as Director for Operations of the Joint Staff. The press release notes, "he will take up his appointment as the successor to General Christopher G. Cavoli, United States Army, at a change of command ceremony at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe in Mons, Belgium, expected in the summer of 2025."
  • Trump privately communicated the choice to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in a call last week, Reuters reported.
  • Of note: the SACEUR is the most important defense role on the European continent. Love America or leave it, the top European security post will still belong to an American – and even very neutral Alpine countries like Switzerland and Austria will benefit.

 

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM – German Defense Minister says country needs 60,000 more troops

  • German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Thursday at the NATO Defense Ministers' summit that his country needs 60,000 more troops to meet the new NATO targets for personnel and matériel, Reuters reports.

 

BERLIN, GERMANY – German court rules that it is illegal to turn away asylum seekers

  • Politico reports that a court in Berlin ruled Monday that the new government's desire to turn away asylum seekers Is illegal. In its ruling, the court said, "People who submit an asylum application during border controls on German territory may not be turned back."
  • The ruling was a response to three asylum seekers from Somalia who entered Germany via Poland but were turned back and returned by German police in May.
  • The court's decision is a big blow for the new German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who on Tuesday said it was necessary to turn back asylum seekers "to protect public safety," France 24 reports, with Reuters adding that Merz said he was prepared to defy the court's order.

 

COLOGNE, GERMANY – Twenty thousand evacuated after World War II bombs discovered

  • Twenty thousand people were evacuated Tuesday including the entire old city of Cologne, with businesses closed and three bridges over the Rhine as well as traffic diverted after the discovery of two undetonated World War II era, US-made 1,000-kilo bombs and a third 500-kilo bomb, The Guardian reports. CBS News reports the bombs were defused Wednesday.
  • While such discoveries and evacuations occur with some frequency in Germany even now, 80 years after the end of the Second World War, this is the biggest evacuation since the war ended in the Western German city.

 

BERLIN, GERMANY – Report: Anti-Israel and pro-Russia hackers biggest cyber crime threat

  • Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office (Bundeskriminalamt or BKA) said Tuesday the country's public institutions face the biggest threat from anti-Israel and pro-Russian hackers, The Times of Israel reports.
  • Of the more than 300,000 known cyber crimes reported in Germany last year, 131,391 took place within Germany while 201,877 were committed from abroad or the location of the perpetrators remains unknown. An additional 950 incidents involving ransomware targeting private companies were reported last year.
  • The total cost of these attacks was well in the billions, with cyber crime costing the country €178.6 billion ($203.7 billion) last year, up €30.4 billion ($34.7 billion) on the previous year.

 

PARIS, FRANCE – Macron condemns violence after Champions League win

  • AFP reports French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the violence that followed Paris Saint Germain's (PSG) Champions League win last Saturday in Munich, calling it "unacceptable."
  • Two people died and over 600 were arrested in fan riots following the PSG win across France. Thirty police and several firefighters were injured as well.
  • Pictures on the BBC of the aftermath of PSG's victory showed looting with police using water canons and tear gas to disperse crowds.

 

PARIS, FRANCE – Twenty five charged in cryptocurrency-related kidnappings

  • The Guardian reports 25 people, including individuals born in France, Angola, Russia and Senegal as well as six minors were charged in Paris over kidnappings involving cryptocurrency industry figures and their family members, with all suspects ranging in age from 16 to 23.
  • The focus of the investigation was the kidnapping attempt of the daughter and grandchild of Pierre Noizat, the CEO of Paymium, on an eastern Parisien street on May 13. Police also said they thwarted a similar abduction attempt in Nantes this week.
  • All these arrests appear to be connected to these two separate incidents.

 

FRANCE – Porn sites go dark over age verification law

  • The Guardian reports porn sites including Pornhub, Youporn and RedTube went dark Wednesday with screens normally filled with salacious content redirected to a statement denouncing France's new age verification law to access pornography online. BBC notes France is Pornhub's second biggest market after the US.
  • France has introduced requirements that pornographic sites verify a user's age with a personal ID or credit card, something Aylo, the parent company of these sites, says it is supportive of but that the current plan "poses a very serious risk" with regards to privacy.
  • France requires porn sites operators' to have a "double blind" option, effectively restricting the sites themselves from seeing a user's indentifying information by pushing verification onto a third party.

 

TEHRAN, IRAN – Iran summons Austrian chargé over Iran nuclear intel report

  • Tehran summoned the Austrian chargé d'affaires Michaela Pacher "to convey Iran's strong protest" after an Austrian intelligence report said the country sought to acquire nuclear weapons, AFP reports.
  • The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which is headquartered in Vienna, said Iran is the only country in the world enriching uranium up to 60%. The IAEA is set to publish a separate report soon with its own findings.
  • Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi responded to the report that Iran is "sincere about a diplomatic solution that will serve the interests of all sides," while separately the Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei called the report "false and baseless," and used the opportunity to assail Israel, according to Turkish-state news agency Anadolu and Iranian-state outlet Press TV.

 

VIENNA, AUSTRIA – Raifessen Bank pays Russia €174 million in damages

  • The Viennese-headquartered Raifessen Bank said Thursday that Russia had debited €174 million ($199 million) from its account to complete the payment of damages Russia says it was owed after the Austrian bank needed Russian regulatory clearance to sell its subsidiary in the country, Reuters reports.
  • In total, Raifessen paid the Russian government more than €2 billion to exit the country.

 

ROME, ITALY – Parliament passes security decree targeting protests, petty crime

  • Reuters reports the upper house of the Italian parliament passed a controversial security decree, giving final approval that targets protests, pickpockets, squatters and so-called legal cannabis.
  • The decree makes it a criminal offense to block roads and deface public property. Revolts in prisons and migrant detention centers as well as occupying private property are also considered criminal offenses in the decree. Protesters who clash with police are to be subject to tougher sanctions and police who are under investigation or on trial have legal cover up to €10,000 ($11,385).
  • Euractiv notes that the decree has been criticized by European institutions including the OSCE and Council of Europe who warn that it is not in line with international human rights law and the tenets of criminal justice in a liberal democracy.

 

CATANIA, ITALY – Gaza flotilla with Greta Thunberg, Irish actor, French politician departs

  • Fifteen years after an Israeli raid on a flotilla attempting to break the blockade on Gaza resulted iin nine deaths, a new, smaller-scale effort departed Sicily last Sunday with Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, Irish "Game of Thrones" actor Liam Cunningham and French politician Rima Hassan on board, Israel's Ynet reports.
  • Al Jazeera English notes the effort, organized by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, aboard the sail boat Madleen includes 12 people on board in total. It is the second attempt after a previous effort failed as the result of a drone attack on a different ship, the Conscience, operated by the group.
  • While the sail boat contains only barrels of supplies, the group acknowledged it was "limited amounts, though symbolic".

 

SWITZERLAND – International exercise to measure radioactivity

  • Swissinfo reports teams from Switzerland, the Czech Republic, France, Germany and Lithuania are on the ground in Switzerland this week in an exercise to prepare for a scenario in which high levels of radioactivity are registered.
  • The details: "To measure an area aeroradiometrically, a Swiss Air Force Super Puma helicopter equipped with a special measuring device flies several times in parallel paths over a defined area at an altitude of around 90 metres. The flights take place from 8am to 5pm – with a lunch break from 12pm to 1.30pm to reduce noise pollution."

 

GOTTHARD BASE TUNNEL, SWITZERLAND – Cause of 2023 derailment determined

  • The final report of the Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board concluded that a broken wheel was responsible for an accident involving a freight train on its way from Chiasso to Basel that shut down the Gotthard Base Tunnel in August 2023, Swissinfo reports.

 

ZURICH & SOLOTHURN, SWITZERLAND – 18 arrests over human trafficking ring

  • Swiss authorities arrested 18 individuals over human trafficking in the cantons of Zurich and Solothurn after they "targeted disadvantaged women in Romania over social media," Swissinfo reports.
  • The women were promised lucrative sex work, not the degrading conditions they experienced, with the women's sexual services being advertised on escort websites.
  • Police in the northeastern Romanian regions of Bacău, Neamț and Iași carried out raids as well.

 

BERN, SWITZERLAND – 55 former diplomats want stronger Swiss pro-Palestine position

  • Fifty-five former Swiss diplomats signed an open letter to Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis urging Switzerland to take a stronger position in support of an independent Palestinian state due to Bern's "unacceptable discretion" in what Middle East Monitor refers to as "alleged Israeli war crimes."
  • Switzerland has issued calls for "a ceasefire, safe humanitarian access, and the release of hostages".
  • One of the signatories, Jean-Daniel Ruch was to become State Secretariat for Security Policy last year, though behind the scenes maneuvering that spilled into the media alleged "he could be open to blackmail because of allegations about his private life," causing Ruch to withdraw his application, Swissinfo reported at the time.

 

BLATTEN, SWITZERLAND – Images of Swiss village obliterated by glacier slide emerge

  • The Atlantic has a photo gallery of images taken from the agencies of the aftermath of last week's glacier slide that destroyed the southern Swiss village of Blatten.

 

And finally…

 

MONACO – Italian princess recovering after 'head first into a wall' motorcycle accident

  • The New York Post reports that Italian Princess Maria Carolina of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, the Duchess of Noto and Capri posted wild photos of her recovery in the intensive care unit of Monaco's Princess Grace Hospital after she crashed "head first into a wall" on a motorcycle.

 

 

Stay safe!

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