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Emirates News Agency - UAE is fast-tracking low-carbon economic growth to deliver new jobs, new industries

Emirates News Agency – UAE is fast-tracking low-carbon economic growth to deliver new jobs, new industries

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ABU DHABI, 29th March, 2022 (WAM) — The UAE is fast-tracking low-carbon economic growth to deliver new jobs, new industries and new revenue streams, according to Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Special Envoy for Climate Change.

Speaking at the Middle East and North Africa Climate Week (MENACW2022), Dr. Al Jaber explained that the UAE is adopting a comprehensive, balanced and proactive approach to climate action and the energy transition that delivers sustainable economic growth.

“As a young country, and a responsible energy leader, the UAE has always faced the future with a positive mindset, and addressed challenges head-on. This is why we stopped flaring 30 years before the World Bank asked the industry to do so. It’s why we achieved 0.01 percent methane intensity 20 years before the global pledge asking for a gradual reduction. It’s why we began to capture C02 (carbon dioxide) on an industrial scale before the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) called it an essential tool for de-carbonization. And it’s why we became the first hydrocarbon producer to power our operations with zero-carbon energy,” Dr. Al Jaber said.

He pointed out that the UAE was also the first country in the region to sign and ratify the Paris Agreement, the first to commit to an economy wide reduction in emissions and the first to announce a Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative. The UAE has chosen to lead in these areas, because it views climate challenges “not just as problems to fix, but as opportunities to seize,” according to Dr. Al Jaber.

While the world mobilises investments for a new energy economy and addresses the climate challenge, Dr. Al Jaber emphasised that recent events have “reminded us that we cannot simply switch off the current energy system.”

“We all need to recognise that the energy transition will take time and require sober, thoughtful planning. It is more evident now than ever before that this cannot be rushed. The push to divest from hydrocarbons has led to a supply crunch that is having the biggest impact on the most exposed. The clear lesson is that we should not adopt climate policies that lead to energy poverty. We need to keep investing in low-cost, low-carbon energy that can provide the baseload power that the world relies on,” said Dr. Al Jaber.

Dr. Al Jaber had reiterated this message during his speech at the Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum held at Expo 2020 Dubai.

On climate finance, he said it can be an effective tool for climate action as he urged the international community to do more and fulfil the $100 billion climate pledge made to developing nations over a decade ago.

“The international community continues to fall short of the $100 billion climate finance pledge they made to developing nations over a decade ago. We need bold targets going forward and we need to start treating climate risks as potential global security risks.

“We have taken a partnership approach focused on projects in countries most exposed to climate risks, because we know that local resilience builds global resilience. We have provided over $1 billion in climate aid to more than 40 countries. And our experience tells us that once concessional finance is there, private finance will follow.”

He concluded by extending the UAE’s invitation to governments, the private sector, financial institutions and civil society to partner on solutions that make sense for our climate and the economy. He said “we should not have to choose between the two. We can and we must make progress on both.”

The MENA Climate Week aims to accelerate collaboration and integrate climate action into global pandemic recovery. Other dignitaries present at the opening ceremony of this first edition included Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and the Environment, Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, Chairman of the World Green Economy Organization (WGEO) and MD & CEO of Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA); and Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of UNFCCC.

 

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Latest news on Russia and the war in Ukraine

Latest news on Russia and the war in Ukraine

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Biden warns Xi of global backlash

Joe Biden speaks with Xi Jinping, March 18, 2022.

The White House

Biden held a nearly two-hour phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Both Biden and Xi agreed on the need to promote peace and assist with the humanitarian disaster created by the invasion. But they disagreed deeply on who is responsible for the suffering in Ukraine, with the Chinese leader refusing to hold Russia singularly accountable for the unprovoked invasion.

Instead, official readouts from Beijing made it clear that Xi’s position was that the U.S. and Europe had provoked Russian President Vladimir Putin into attacking Ukraine by expanding NATO into Eastern Europe.

During the call, Biden “described the implications and consequences if China provides material support to Russia,” the White House said.

— Christina Wilkie

Canada welcomes Ukrainian refugees

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visits Church of St Demetrius the Great Martyr to speak with members of the Ukrainian community as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, March 4, 2022.

Carlos Osorio | Reuters

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the country has opened a temporary residency program for Ukrainian refugees.

Canada is now taking applications that will allow Ukranians to stay as temporary residents for up to three years under an extended visitor visa program, as opposed to a six-month visa.

The program expedites processing and waives application fees.

— Dawn Kopecki

U.S. targets Abramovich plane, 99 others over Russia export violations

A plane, according to Swiss media reports believed to be used in the past by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, is pictured on the grounds of EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg near Mulhouse, France, March 9, 2022.

Arnd Wiegmann | Reuters

The U.S. Commerce Department will effectively ground 100 airplanes that have recently flown to Russia and are believed to violate U.S. export controls, including a plane used by Russian businessman Roman Abramovich, officials told Reuters.

The list, seen by Reuters, includes 99 Boeing airplanes operated by Russian passenger and cargo carriers including Aeroflot, AirBridge Cargo, Utair, Nordwind, Azur Air and Aviastar-TU — as well as Abramovich’s Gulfstream G650 — and could further hinder Russian efforts to continue some international flights.

The Commerce Department will warn companies and other entities around the world that any refueling, maintenance, repair, or spare parts or services violate U.S. export controls and subject companies to U.S. enforcement actions that could include “substantial jail time, fines, loss of export privileges, or other restrictions,” the department said.

— Reuters

Russia celebrates 8th anniversary of the annexation of Crimea

Russians celebrate the 8th anniversary of the annexation of Crimea.

People hold a banner reading “For Putin!” during a concert marking the eighth anniversary of Russia’s annexation of Crimea at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia March 18, 2022. 

Pavel Bednyakov | Reuters

A woman poses for pictures from behind a car door with its window decorated with the letter “Z”, which has become a symbol of support for Russian military action in Ukraine, during celebrations marking the eight anniversary of Russia’s annexation of Crimea in Simferopol on March 18, 2022.

Stringer | AFP | Getty Images

People wave Russian flags during a concert marking the eighth anniversary of Russia’s annexation of Crimea at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia March 18, 2022. 

Ramil Sitdikov | Reuters

A man holds a portrait of Russian President Vladimir Putin during celebrations of the eighth anniversary of Russia’s annexation of Crimea in Simferopol, Crimea March 18, 2022.

Alexey Pavlishak | Reuters

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a concert marking the eighth anniversary of Russia’s annexation of Crimea at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia March 18, 2022.

Alexander Vilf | Reuters

Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant expected to be working again next week

French public nuclear safety institute IRSN said on December 3, 2014 it had not detected any unusual radioactivity in Ukraine and that the incident at a nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhya posed no danger for populations or the environment.

Reuters

Ukrainian officials expect that the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant will be working again next week after the site was damaged by Russian shelling.

Ukrainian engineers are currently repairing one of three disconnected power lines linking the country’s largest nuclear power plant to the electricity grid, International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi wrote in a statement.

Russian forces took control of the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant on March 4. A week prior, Russian forces took control of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant.

– Amanda Macias

State Department denied access to Brittney Griner in Russia

A close up shot of Brittney Griner #42…

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Latest Russia-Ukraine news: Ukraine Air Force shoots down several Russian aircrafts with missiles - New York Post

Latest Russia-Ukraine news: Ukraine Air Force shoots down several Russian aircrafts with missiles – New York Post

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Latest Russia-Ukraine news: Ukraine Air Force shoots down several Russian aircrafts with missiles  New York Post

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Ukraine-Russia War News: Live Updates and Latest Video

Ukraine-Russia War News: Live Updates and Latest Video

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Venezuela’s authoritarian government on Tuesday released at least two imprisoned Americans, an American official and Venezuelan human rights defenders said, a potential turning point in the Biden administration’s relationship with Russia’s staunchest ally in the Western Hemisphere.

The release followed a rare trip by a high-level U.S. delegation to Venezuela over the weekend to meet with President Nicolás Maduro, part of a broader Biden administration agenda in autocratic countries that may be rethinking their ties with President Vladimir V. Putin in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The talks with Venezuela, which has enormous proven oil reserves, assumed new urgency after President Biden announced Tuesday that the United States would ban Russian oil and gas imports because of the invasion. That move is expected to further tighten the availability of crude oil on the global market, and could raise gas prices at a moment when inflation has climbed at its fastest pace in 40 years.

“This is a step that we’re taking to inflict further pain on Putin, but there will be costs as well here in the United States,” Mr. Biden said of the ban on Russian oil.

American officials said that the prisoner release was not part of a deal with Venezuela to restart oil sales to the United States, which were banned under the Trump administration. For weeks, American business people who have worked in Venezuela have had back-channel discussions about resuming America’s oil trade with Mr. Maduro’s government.

Venezuela could eventually help make up some of the shortfall caused by the ban on Russian oil. But industry experts warned that Venezuelan oil supplies would do little to tame American gas prices and inflation quickly. Increasing the country’s production may take time after the years of mismanagement and underinvestment that have decimated the country’s energy sector.

Prominent members of Congress have also come out against efforts to thaw relations with Mr. Maduro, whose government has been accused by the United Nations of systematic human rights violations.

“Nicolás Maduro is a cancer to our hemisphere and we should not breathe new life into his reign of torture and murder,” Senator Bob Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat who leads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Monday in a statement.

The released men are Gustavo Cárdenas, an executive at the American branch of Venezuela’s state oil company who was detained in 2017, and Jorge Alberto Fernández, according to a U.S. official and an American businessman who was briefed on the situation. Mr. Fernández, a Cuban American, was a tourist who was accused of terrorism for bringing a drone into Venezuela in February 2021, according to his lawyer.

At least eight other U.S. nationals remain jailed in Caracas on charges ranging from embezzlement to terrorism.

The purpose of the American officials’ visit to Venezuela was to discuss “energy security” and the status of imprisoned Americans, the White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a news conference.

Mr. Maduro said he received the American delegation at the presidential palace and called the meeting “respectful, cordial, very diplomatic.” The talks, he said, would continue. He also said he would restart talks with the country’s opposition.

The Venezuelan government wants to resume oil sales to the United States to take advantage of high oil prices and to replace the revenues from trade channels it built through the Russian financial system that have been frozen by Western nations to punish Russian aggression against Ukraine, according to officials and oil businessmen in the country.

Selling directly to the United States would also allow Mr. Maduro to reap full profits from the highest oil prices in more than a decade, instead of selling the crude at deep discount to a network of middlemen used to bypass the U.S. ban, they said.

Before that ban, Venezuela exported most of its oil to the United States, whose Gulf refineries were built to process the country’s heavy crude.

In 2017, Venezuelan security forces arrested six executives from Citgo Petroleum, the American branch of the state oil company, after the Maduro government summoned them to meetings in Caracas. The State Department has said that all six detainees are U.S. nationals.

The executives were charged with financial crimes and jailed. Their former boss, Nelson Martínez, the head of the state oil company, was detained soon after them and died in custody a year later.

The executives’ families and their lawyers have said that the men, who have come to be known as the Citgo 6, are innocent and that they were lured to Caracas to be used by Mr. Maduro as pawns in his negotiations with the United States.

Venezuela’s treatment of the executives varied as U.S.-Venezuelan relations warmed and cooled. Sometimes the detainees were held in prison, other times in house arrest. Since last year, they have been held in a single…

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Three killed in suspected Houthi drone attacks in UAE: Live | Houthis News

Three killed in suspected Houthi drone attacks in UAE: Live | Houthis News

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A suspected drone attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels targeting a key oil facility in Abu Dhabi killed three people and started a separate fire at Abu Dhabi’s international airport, police said.

Police in the United Arab Emirates identified the dead as two Indian nationals and one Pakistani.

“Small flying objects” were found as three petrol tanks exploded in an industrial area and a fire was ignited at the airport, police said, as Houthi rebels announced “military operations” in the UAE.

The UAE which had largely scaled down its military presence in Yemen in 2019, continues to hold sway through the Yemeni forces it armed and trained.

Drone attacks are a hallmark of the Houthis’ assaults on Saudi Arabia, the UAE ally that is leading the coalition fighting for Yemen’s government in the grinding civil war.

Yemen’s conflict has been a catastrophe for millions of its citizens who have fled their homes, with many on the brink of famine, in what the UN calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

Here are the latest updates:

Bahrain ‘strongly condemns’ Houthi attack

Bahrain condemned what it described as a “cowardly terrorist attack”.

In a statement carried by Bahrain’s official state news agency, the foreign affairs ministry said the kingdom “denounces this Houthi attack”.

The Kingdom stands “in solidarity with the United Arab Emirates and all the measures it will take to confront such cowardly attacks,” BNA reported.

UAE condemns ‘heinous Houthi attack’

The UAE condemned a “heinous” attack it blamed on the Houthi rebels.

“UAE authorities… are dealing… with the heinous Houthi attack on some civilian installations in Abu Dhabi,” tweeted presidential advisor Anwar Gargash, referring to the Yemeni rebels.

Houthis ‘capable of carrying out this type of attack’: Analyst

Principal MENA analyst at risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft, Torbjorn Soltvedt, said the Houthis have shown in the past that they are “very much capable of carrying out this type of attack”.

The range of the attack “fit with previous similar attacks in Saudi Arabia”, Soltvedt told Al Jazeera.

In previous incidents, they [UAE] have been very measured in their response to such attacks, he said. A big part of that is the “very tense security environment that we have in the region”.

“One of the big questions is … whether or not there’s been any type of direct or indirect Iranian involvement in this attack,” Soltvedt added.

Etihad Airways says flights were briefly disrupted

An Etihad Airways spokesperson said a small number of flights were briefly disrupted at Abu Dhabi airport due to “precautionary measures”, but normal operations quickly resumed.

ADNOC says working with authorities to ‘determine exact cause’ of attack

ADNOC oil firm said an incident at its Mussafah Fuel Depot at 10:00am local time had resulted in a fire and that it was working with authorities to “determine the exact cause”.

“ADNOC is deeply saddened to confirm that three colleagues have died. A further six colleagues were injured and received immediate specialist medical care,” it said in a statement.

Police closed the road leading to the area.

“Initial investigations found parts of a small plane that could possibly be a drone at both sites that could have caused the explosion and the fire,” Abu Dhabi police said.

Statement on ‘special military operation’ in UAE coming soon: Houthis

Yahya Saree, the Houthi military spokesman, said in a Twitter post that an “important statement” is coming to “announce a special military operation in the depth of UAE”.

Houthis ‘frustrated’ over Saudi-UAE influence in Yemen: Al Jazeera correspondent

Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra, who has reported extensively on Yemen, said that the attack comes against the backdrop of a “massive military operation which is underway now in Yemen”.

“The Saudi-led coalition said yesterday that it has been intensifying their attacks in different areas around Marib, and also major Houthi strongholds,” Ahelbarra said.

Meanwhile, the Houthis have been “frustrated” over what they say is growing Saudi-Emirati influence in Yemen, he said.

The attack on the UAE was carried out as a “show of defiance to the Saudis and the Emiratis,” Ahelbarra added.

“The Houthis are saying despite more than seven years of massive campaigns against us, we are more powerful than before … we have managed to further upgrade our military capabilities to the point that we can launch daring attacks inside Saudi Arabia and the UAE.”

Oil giant ADNOC facility in the capital of the United Arab Emirates, Abu DhabiMen stand outside a storage facility of oil giant ADNOC in…

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Kazakhstan president orders creation of special forces in wake of mass protests - News

Kazakhstan president orders creation of special forces in wake of mass protests – News

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Law enforcement agencies have also been ordered to establish the exact number of civilian casualties caused by the unrest

By ANI

After weeks of protests and unrest in the country, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev instructed the country’s National Security Council to accelerate efforts to establish a Special Operations Force, reported Sputnik.

“Kassym-Jomart Tokayev instructed the Secretary of the Security Council to speed up work on the creation of special operations forces and submit specific proposals for reforming the national security system,” Sputnik reported citing the presidential press service as said in a statement on Saturday.

The law enforcement agencies have also been ordered by the President to undertake an investigation and establish the exact number of civilian casualties caused by the unrest.

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Ethiopia denies attack on Sudan, blames rebels for violence | News

Ethiopia denies attack on Sudan, blames rebels for violence | News

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Ethiopian government spokesman dismisses Sudanese claims that the military had attacked Sudan as ‘groundless’.

Ethiopia has denied it staged an attack over the weekend along its shared border with Sudan, blaming unrest in the disputed zone on rebels from its war-hit Tigray region.

On Saturday, Sudan’s military said “several” soldiers had been killed in an attack by armed groups and militias linked to the Ethiopian military in the fertile expanse known as Al-Fashaqa.

The area has long been a source of tension between Addis Ababa and Khartoum, sparking deadly clashes over the last year.

But in comments that aired on state media on Sunday, Ethiopian government spokesman Legesse Tulu dismissed claims the military had attacked Sudan as “groundless”.

Instead, he blamed the violence on the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), the fighter group that has been locked in a gruesome war against Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government since November 2020 and claims to be approaching the capital Addis Ababa.

“A large group of insurgents, bandits and terrorists had entered [from Sudan],” Legesse said in comments aired by the Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation, without providing evidence.

“The Ethiopian National Defence Force and the local militia have destroyed them,” he added.

Legesse also said the TPLF was training in Sudan and receiving support from unspecified “foreign backers”.

The land in Al-Fashaqa has for years been cultivated by Ethiopian farmers, though Sudan claims it falls within its territory.

In November 2020, around the time Abiy sent troops into Tigray to remove the TPLF, Khartoum stationed troops in Al-Fashaqa, a move Addis Ababa has described as an invasion.

‘Peaceful solution’

Yet Legesse said Ethiopia was keen to resolve the matter peacefully.

“The Ethiopian National Defence Force doesn’t have an agenda to open an attack on any sovereign country,” he said, referring to the military.

“There is land that the Sudanese forces have invaded. The government is sitting down to resolve [the dispute] in a peaceful process, through dialogue and negotiation.”

The war in northern Ethiopia has killed thousands of people and driven hundreds of thousands more into famine-like conditions, according to the United Nations estimates.

Last week, Abiy, winner of the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize, announced he would head to the front to lead operations against the TPLF.

On Sunday, state media reported that the military and special forces from the Afar region had taken control of the town of Chifra.

The area around Chifra has been the site of fierce fighting in recent weeks, with the TPLF apparently trying to seize control of a critical highway that brings goods into Addis Ababa.

A TPLF source disputed the state media report on Monday, saying “active fighting is going on”.



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Taliban LIVE: Afghan resistance movement growing as groups take part in military training | World | News

Taliban LIVE: Afghan resistance movement growing as groups take part in military training | World | News

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There is a danger that not all Irish citizens will be evacuated before the deadline on August 31, according to Irish foreign affairs minister Simon Coveney. 

Mr Coveney said: “I don’t want to raise expectations unrealistically, that everybody will get out as a result of this.

“Even beyond the 31st of this month, into September, we will continue to work with Irish citizens if they’re in Kabul.

“Everybody knows, unless President Biden makes a decision today to work with partners to extend their presence there beyond the 31st, everybody knows we’re talking about days not weeks.”

Ten Irish citizens have already been evacuated with the assistance of the Department of Foreign Affairs and the embassy in Abu Dhabi.

Those seeking evacuation have been described as mainly family groups.

There is currently 36 Irish citizens and their family members still in Afghanistan.

Mr Coveney said: “The remaining are 24 Irish citizens and 12 non-Irish family members that have visas to come to Ireland.

“They are predominantly Afghan-Irish, if you like.

“They’re Irish citizens and we’re absolutely committed to them.”

He added that evacuating them is more complicated, because they need to leave as family units.

He also said that “because they are Afghan as well as Irish, it is more difficult get them through the crowd and into the airport”.

“We have places on planes for all of these 36 people.”

Mr Coveney said sending the Irish team to Kabul is not without risk, but he told Newstalk: “On balance, this is the right thing to do.”



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British special forces on hunt for drone killers | World | News

British special forces on hunt for drone killers | World | News

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It is believed that Iranian-backed Houthi rebels carried out the ­atrocity at the behest of Tehran. General Sir Nick Carter, head of Britain’s Armed Forces, has called for Western retaliation for the attack which killed Adrian Underwood, a former British ­soldier working for UK firm Ambrey to provide ­security for the vessel, and its Romanian captain. He said: “What we need to be doing is calling out Iran for its very reckless behaviour.”

A 40-strong team of SAS ­soldiers arrived in eastern Yemen yesterday.

Landing at Al Ghaydah ­airport in Mahra, they are said to be using local handlers, ­subsidised by the Foreign Office, who have know­ledge of the region to help hunt the Houthi mercenaries responsible. The team also includes a specialist ­electronic ­warfare unit which can deploy resources to hoover up communications chatter.

It is feared Tehran supplied the militants with the long-range unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), to threaten international ­merchant vessels in some of the world’s ­busiest shipping lanes.

US-Israeli intelligence believe the drone was launched from ­eastern Yemen and directed by GPS towards the tanker before an operator took control for the final mile, directing the rocket via camera into the ship’s bridge.

The attack happened on July 30, some 152 nautical miles north-east of the Omani port of Duqm.

The SAS team is operating with a US special operations force which was already in the region and helping to train an elite Saudi commando unit. The UK, US and Israel have condemned Iran for the attack on MV Mercer Street, though the Islamic regime denies involvement. Operated by London-based Zodiac Maritime, part of Israeli ­billionaire Eyal Ofer’s Zodiac Group, the vessel was heading from Tanzania to United Arab Emirates.

The UK mission will send a clear message to Iran that the UK will not tolerate such attacks in international waters.

And Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid, who said he was in constant contact with British counterpart Dominic Raab, said he “noted to him the need to respond severely”.

A senior UK military source said last night: “Everything points to the drone being launched from Yemen. The concern now is that an extended range drone will give them a new capability.”

Ebrahim Raisi, dubbed the “butcher of Tehran” for his role in the massacre of 30,000 political prisoners in 1988, was sworn in as the Islamic regime’s eighth president on Thursday.



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DVIDS - News - 123rd Airlift Wing earns 19th Air Force Outstanding Unit Award

DVIDS – News – 123rd Airlift Wing earns 19th Air Force Outstanding Unit Award

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The Kentucky Air National Guard’s 123rd Airlift Wing received its 19th Air Force Outstanding Unit Award during a ceremony here Saturday, maintaining a lengthy record as the most decorated airlift unit in the U.S. Air Force.

The coveted honor, bestowed annually on the top 10 percent of units, recognizes excellence in mission performance, deployments, readiness, inspections and community engagement.

The latest award is the Louisville-based wing’s seventh consecutive AFOUA. Only a handful of units across the Air Force have earned 19 such honors, and no other airlift unit has equaled the feat.

“You know, this sure as heck isn’t the first time we’ve (presented this award), and I trust it’s not going to be the last time, either,” said Kentucky’s adjutant general, Brig. Gen. Hal Lamberton, just prior to bestowing the honor during a ceremony at the Kentucky Air National Guard Base.

Lamberton spoke of the wing’s nearly 75-year history of achievement, noting that its mission and aircraft have changed many times, from fighter planes and aerial defense to reconnaissance, then airlift.

“But it’s not about the equipment,” Lamberton said. “It’s about you guys. It’s the quality of folks that we’ve got in the wing. It’s the quality of the men and women doing the jobs that you do — doing it here, doing it overseas — virtually every day.

“I’m honored to be part of this recognition this morning, as we add another streamer to your guidon.”

The 123rd Airlift Wing, which flies the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft, earned the award for exceptional performance across a broad spectrum of operations, from homeland disaster response to the overseas war effort, between Oct. 1, 2017 and Sept. 30, 2019. During that period, the wing deployed 53 percent of its Airmen to 34 locations in 21 countries, two territories and five geographic commands, many in harm’s way, for a total of 78,455 days in support of Operations Noble Eagle, Freedom’s Sentinel, Inherent Resolve and Spartan Shield.

In addition to participating in numerous exercises with U.S and multinational forces across Europe — including the 75th-anniversary re-enactment of D-Day in France — the 123rd Airlift Wing deployed scores of Airmen and multiple aircraft to the Persian Gulf region, where they flew more than 2,300 sorties to deliver 22,350 troops and 7,447 tons of cargo to destinations across the U.S. Central Command Area of Responsibility.

The wing’s Special Tactics Airmen also augmented active-duty Special Forces in Iraq and Syria during a five-month deployment, conducting 40 joint special operations missions and providing command and control for multiple surveys in enemy territory.

The Special Tactics Airmen were active in the United States as well, mobilizing a 10-person team to Virginia to establish a coordination cell for the recovery of victims following Hurricane Florence, reducing response time by 50 percent.

The wing’s 123rd Medical Group was heavily engaged at home, too. The unit served as the lead agency for a field exercise in rural Eastern Kentucky involving 200 medical and dental troops from across the U.S. military. Working from field clinics established at four high schools in medically underserved communities, the team performed 11,275 medical and dental procedures for 2,662 patients, providing more than $1 million in care and eyeglasses at no costs to residents.

The wing’s Airmen also distinguished themselves with multiple individual honors during the award period. Among them, Lt. Col. J.T. Hourigan was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for exceptional airmanship by saving a C-130 aircraft and multiple lives following a catastrophic in-flight mechanical failure; and Tech. Sgt. Daniel Keller earned the Air Force Cross for gallantry in action on an Afghan battlefield — one of only 10 bestowed Air Force-wide since 9/11.

Both honors were presented by the Air Force chief of staff during ceremonies held at the Kentucky Air National Guard Base in Louisville.

The wing completed yet another four-month deployment to the Persian Gulf in November, during which its aircrews flew 4,948 combat sorties to deliver 15,000 passengers and 10,158 tons of supplies to locations across U.S. Central Command.

The wing’s Airmen currently are providing administrative support to Coronavirus vaccination sites across Kentucky as part of the Commonwealth’s response to the COVID-19 crisis.



…
Date Taken: 08.07.2021

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