- Wall Street leaders concerned about Mamdani’s policies impacting NYC competitiveness
- Some finance heavyweights including Ackman oppose Mamdani
- Mamdani has engaged with business leaders
World
Lithuania ramps up power grid security ahead of Russia decoupling
Lithuania’s government says it will boost security on its power grids with Poland ahead of planned decoupling from Russian energy system next month.
Lithuania says it’s ramping up security around the country’s electricity link with Poland ahead of their planned disconnection from the Baltic region’s power systems, a Soviet-era grid shared with Russia and Belarus.
Lithuanian Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas says the government has asked police forces to protect the power link shared with Warsaw.
After recent incidents and suspected sabotage in the Baltic Sea, Vilnius believes it’s crucial to ensure security measures around the LitPol Link are intensified.
Last month, the former Lithuanian government decided to increase security of the LitPol’s converter and transformer station near the city of Alytus in southern Lithuania. That mission was outsourced to a private security company, who were contracted to protect the premises until spring. They would then handover the protection duty to the country’s Public Security Service.
Paluckas, who assumed office on 12 December, announced on Wednesday that his cabinet has decided to begin the transition process next week.
“We evaluate every possible version of sabotage, from cybersecurity to physical actions. Therefore, we deploy the Public Security Service, because it has the most experience in protecting the critical objects. They will replace private security services that have been protecting these objects,” said Paluckas at a press conference.
Lithuania says the Baltic Sea has for some time been “very peculiar” as incidents of undersea infrastructure damage and destruction increased.
“Either it’s intentional or unintentional, the number of these incidents will increase. The Baltic Sea is very peculiar, it’s relatively shallow and cables are not that deep. Therefore, these incidents will repeat, because Russia is using the shadow fleet,” said Giedrimas Jeglinskas, Chairman of Parliament Committee on National Security and Defence.
Vilnius says it is observing “clear and unambiguous attempts by opponents to disrupt” their planned decoupling from the Russian energy systems, according to the office of the Lithuanian prime minister. They offered no further detail as to what those attempts are or who could be behind them.
The government did however provide assurances to the public asserting that there are no scenarios in which the country would be left without power. Officials also added that if disruptions do indeed occur, they will not steer the country away from its long-time goal of disconnecting from the Kremlin’s electricity grid.
“There is no scenario in which Lithuania would be left without electricity. We’ve evaluated all scenarios, including operating without any interconnections. Those reserves have been assessed, and scenarios A, B, C, D and so on have been worked out. Perhaps the most important message that we want to communicate is the following: Despite any provocations that could occur, any incidents, the disconnection from BRELL [Belarus, Russia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania] – the Russian electricity grid – is inevitable and will happen in exactly one month,” noted Arnoldas Pikzirnis, Lithuanian Vice Energy Minister.
The Baltic states expect to decouple from the Russian energy grid shared with Belarus on 8 February.
They then plan to take-over the responsibility for running their own national grids which have been seeing years of steady upgrades. The development of those grids was supported by €1.6 billion of European funding.
World
Rubio slams Hamas after video shows suspected operatives looting Gaza aid truck: ‘They’re the impediment’
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio blasted Hamas on Saturday after a U.S. military drone video surfaced showing suspected operatives of the terror group looting a truck carrying humanitarian aid bound for civilians in Gaza.
The video, released by U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), shows suspected Hamas operatives attacking the driver of an aid truck Friday and dragging him to the road’s median, before fleeing the scene with both the vehicle and its cargo.
“Hamas continues to deprive the people of Gaza of the humanitarian aid they desperately need,” Rubio wrote on X. “This theft undermines international efforts in support of President Trump’s 20 Point Plan to deliver critical assistance to innocent civilians.”
NEW STUDY SAYS AID THEFT BY TERROR GROUPS AND REGIMES IS PROLONGING GLOBAL CONFLICTS
Rubio said Hamas itself remains “the impediment” — accusing the terror group of blocking relief intended for civilians.
The video, released by U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), shows suspected Hamas operatives attacking the driver of an aid truck, dragging him to the road’s median, and then fleeing the scene with both the vehicle and its cargo. (U.S. CENTCOM via X)
“They must lay down their arms and stop their looting so that Gaza can have a brighter future,” he added.
The truck was part of a humanitarian convoy carrying supplies from international partners to Gazans in northern Khan Younis, according to CENTCOM.
The incident was captured on video surveillance by the Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) using a U.S. MQ-9 drone that was monitoring the implementation of the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, the command noted.
ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU ORDERS ‘IMMEDIATE AND POWERFUL STRIKES IN THE GAZA STRIP’
Secretary of State Marco Rubio blasted Hamas on Saturday after drone video surfaced showing suspected operatives of the terror group looting a truck carrying humanitarian aid bound for civilians in Gaza. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
“Operatives attacked the driver and stole the aid and truck after moving the driver to the road’s median,” CENTCOM posted to X. “The driver’s current status is unknown.”
Nearly 40 nations and international organizations are coordinating humanitarian, logistical and security assistance for Gaza through the CMCC, the command said.
“Over the past week, international partners have delivered more than 600 trucks of commercial goods and aid into Gaza daily,” CENTCOM wrote. “This incident undermines these efforts.”
TRUMP GIVES HAMAS 48 HOURS TO RETURN ALL DECEASED GAZA HOSTAGES, OR ‘OTHER COUNTRIES WILL TAKE ACTION’
Nearly 40 nations and international organizations are coordinating humanitarian, logistical and security assistance for Gaza through the CMCC, according to CENTCOM. (Khames Alrefi/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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The CMCC, located in southern Israel, officially opened on Oct. 17, marking the establishment of a central hub for Gaza aid just days after a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas went into effect.
The center serves as the main hub for Gaza stabilization efforts and includes an operations floor designed to track real-time developments inside Gaza.
Data published in August by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) showed that most of its aid entering the war-torn Gaza Strip had been looted inside the Palestinian territory.
Fox News Digital’s Rachel Wolf and Ruth Marks Eglash contributed to this report.
The EU has praised Moldova’s efforts towards European integration. But the country, which filed its bid to join the EU almost at the same time as Ukraine, is now caught in the crossfire of Hungary’s veto against Kyiv.
Its president Maia Sandu calls for clarity in comments to Euronews.
NEW YORK, Oct 31 (Reuters) – Wall Street and the finance industry have broad misgivings about the prospect of frontrunner Zohran Mamdani becoming New York City’s mayor, but many are hopeful he moderates his positions as they prepare to try and work alongside him.
Mamdani’s policies range from hiking taxes on New York City’s wealthiest, raising the corporation tax, freezing stabilized apartment rental rates and increasing publicly subsidized housing, raising worries among the finance community that the city’s competitiveness will suffer.
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“There are a whole bunch of ideas that are well-intentioned. What I agree with is that he has attracted real passion,” said Cromwell Coulson, chief executive at Manhattan-based markets data and trading platform OTC Markets Group. Still, Coulson cited concerns, saying that some people could be driven to leave the city if it becomes an unfriendly place for commerce.
“It won’t be day one, but you will see where our hiring footprints go,” said Coulson, who said he ultimately supports Mamdani’s top rival in the race, former Governor Andrew Cuomo, a moderate Democrat. Republican Curtis Sliwa is also on the ballot in the November 4 election.
Reuters spoke to more than half a dozen other members of the finance community, including executives or representatives of financial firms or industry sectors, who declined to be named talking about politics.
“If the election turns out the way the polls suggest, … let’s hope that the worst fears of what might occur thereafter are not realized and that the new mayor, whoever it might be, continues to realize the importance of the business community to the city,” Peter Orszag, CEO of financial advisory and asset management firm Lazard CEO, said on a recent earnings conference call. Orszag had served under Democratic former President Barack Obama as director of the Office of Management and Budget.
Some heavyweights in finance have poured money into efforts to defeat Mamdani. High-profile investor Bill Ackman posted on X on Sunday that Mamdani’s “anti-business policies including higher corporate taxes will kill NYC jobs and cause companies to flee.” Ackman has donated $1 million to Defend NYC, which describes itself as a “bipartisan group of New Yorkers united by a shared concern over the policies and record of Zohran Mamdani,” and $750,000 to Fix the City, which supports Cuomo, according to data on the New York City Campaign Finance Board website.
Billionaire investor Dan Loeb has donated $600,000 to Fix the City and $100,000 to Defend NYC. Representatives for both Ackman and Loeb declined comment.
Still, with betting website Polymarket having the odds of Mamdani winning at 95%, Wall Street leaders are increasingly focusing on how to work with him. Indeed, Mamdani has been engaged directly with business leaders. He spoke with CEOs in meetings organized by the Partnership for New York City, whose members include Wall Street banks, private equity firms and law firms, according to Kathryn Wylde, CEO of the organization. In the summer, he spoke by phone with JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) CEO Jamie Dimon, who offered help if Mamdani becomes mayor, one of the sources said. Another of the sources said Mamdani has been engaged with the real estate industry.
The call with Dimon was previously reported by Bloomberg.
Yasser Salem, CEO of OneNYC, an independent expenditure committee that backs Mamdani, told Reuters in an interview that he is assembling an advisory council of business leaders to work with Mamdani if he prevails.
“We are highly focused on building specific instances and demonstrations of trust” with the business community, Salem said.
Representatives for Mamdani and Cuomo did not respond to requests for comment.
While the mayor of New York does not have direct oversight on Wall Street, the mayor sets the tone on whether the global heart of capitalism is perceived as business friendly. Governor Kathy Hochul in September endorsed Mamdani in an opinion piece in The New York Times, while saying that she wants to keep New York the center of the global economy.
Christina Greer, a political science professor at Fordham University in New York, noted that for tax hikes to be enacted Mamdani would have to work in conjunction with Albany, which must approve any city tax hikes.
“Whatever process will happen will be incredibly slow and may never actually affect” wealthy residents, said Greer.
RIPPLE EFFECTS THROUGH CITY
Real estate could see a ripple effect, with Mamdani pushing for a rent freeze on rent-stabilized apartments, a measure undertaken by former Mayor Bill de Blasio but reversed by the current outgoing mayor, Eric Adams.
A potential rent freeze has spooked many landlords and lenders, said Paul Rahimian, CEO of Parkview Financial, a Los Angeles real estate lender which has a New York City office. Rahimian said the firm was taking a “hold and see” attitude to extending new loans to real estate developers and projects in New York until after the election.
“There are a lot of landlords that are now no longer making money but whose properties are costing them money every year,” he said.
Isaac Toledano, founder and CEO of Miami-based real estate investment firm BH Group, said he anticipated that 2026 would be busy with relocations from New York to Florida if Mamdani wins.
“There are a lot of people that do not agree with what he’s going to do,” said Toledano.
Reporting by Anirban Sen, Tatiana Bautzer, Lananh Nguyen, Suzanne McGee; additional reporting by Maria Tsvetkova, Matt Tracy, Megan Davies; Writing by Megan Davies; Editing by Leslie Adler
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
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