🔥 North Korean Hypersonics

Good Morning. China's Foreign Ministry confirmed a meeting between diplomat Wang Kejian and Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Qatar, discussing the Gaza conflict.

Critics argue China's Hamas relations and failure to condemn its attack on Israel may hinder Beijing's mediation efforts.

The meeting follows Wang's talks with Israeli and Palestinian officials, emphasizing China's political support for Palestinians and calling for a peace conference based on the two-state solution. However, China's influence is seen as limited, mainly providing political support.

THE BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT

North Korea Claims Success Testing Hypersonic Missile Able To Strike ‘Distant US Targets’

North Korea successfully tested a solid-fuel engine for a new intermediate-range hypersonic missile, aimed at enhancing its capability to strike ‘U.S. targets’ in the region, the Hermit Kingdom says.

Kim's Strategic Moves

Kim Jong Un keeps to a 2021 commitment to advancing high-tech weaponry in response to perceived U.S. hostility, seeking leverage for potential U.S. concessions.

Rattling Sabers

The most recent successful test follows Kim’s recent guiding of a ground test of a multi-stage solid fuel engine for hypersonic missiles. North Korea’s similar test procedures have been on a steady incline in recent months, as Asia-Pacific regional tensions spike.

In advancing its missile technology, North Korea continually endeavors to bolster its negotiating power on the global stage.

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY & DIPLOMACY

Counterterrorism

• The Israel Defense Forces confirmed a Houthi-launched cruise missile from the Red Sea struck near Eilat, marking the first such incursion into Israeli airspace.

• Police found no evidence of a bomb at Seoul's Gocheok Sky Dome during the first regular-season MLB games in South Korea, where the Los Angeles Dodgers faced the San Diego Padres.

• In Pakistan's southwestern city of Gwadar, six individuals, primarily security personnel, were killed after terrorists attacked a government building. Pakistani forces responded quickly, eliminating all eight attackers in a gunfight, a senior official reported anonymously.

Military & Defense

• Turkey conducted airstrikes against Kurdish militants in Iraq, following an attack that killed a Turkish soldier and wounded four others. These strikes are part of Turkey's ongoing operations against the PKK.

• A Greek F-16 jet crashed in the Aegean Sea during a training flight, with the pilot ejecting and subsequently being rescued. The incident, occurring near Psathoura Island, resulted in the pilot's hospitalization for observation.

• On his first visit to the Indo-Pacific region, Britain's Foreign Secretary met with Thailand's Prime Minister to enhance cooperation in defense, economy, and trade. The UK values its trade relationship with Thailand at $7.6 billion annually.

• Sudanese paramilitary forces executed a drone strike, destroying a government C-130 transport plane upon its landing in Khartoum. The Rapid Support Forces claimed responsibility, releasing a video of the aircraft's destruction at Wadi Saydna base.

Cybersecurity

• A new denial-of-service (DoS) attack method, targeting UDP-based application-layer protocols and risking hundreds of thousands of hosts, involves making servers communicate endlessly. This "Loop DoS" attack exploits UDP's lack of IP validation, allowing attackers to create a reflected DoS by spoofing victim IP addresses.

• Smokeloader malware, used by Russia-linked cybercriminals, continues to be a key tool for financial attacks in Ukraine, a report states. Between May and November 2023, 23 campaigns targeting financial and government entities were most intense in August and October, as per Ukraine's SSSCIP and Palo Alto Networks.

Counterintelligence & Espionage

• Russia has warned that US intelligence's use of commercial satellite operators like SpaceX makes these satellites legitimate targets.

• A German military officer, Thomas H, has been charged with espionage for allegedly spying for Russia, remaining in custody since his arrest last August.

Transnational Organized Crime

• Antwerp takes the title of Europe's highest cocaine capital for the second year straight, the EU drugs agency and the SCORE group disclosed. Their analysis of wastewater from 88 cities in 23 EU countries and Turkey revealed increased use of cocaine, ketamine, and MDMA.

• Prosecutors found bodies stacked in a bulletproof SUV In Jalisco, Mexico, after responding to an emergency call on the vehicle. The corpses showed of signs of violent deaths. Additional bodies were found mutilated near Arizona’s border, underscoring the region’s rising violence.

• Bosnian police arrested six individuals linked to a counterfeit diploma scheme led by a Sicilian professor, Salvatore Guiseppe Maria Messina. The operation, named "Index," targeted those connected to private universities in Bosnia and Herzegovina involved in the fraud.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

OpenAI's next big thing, GPT-5, is rumored for a mid-year release, promising a "materially better" experience than GPT-4. Testers, including CEOs with custom demos, are already impressed by its advancements.

Material Difference: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman teases a GPT-5 that will be “smarter, faster”and have multi-modal capabilities.

Codename Gobi: Anticipation is building over the release of the new GPT-5, reportedly code named “Gobi,” which stands out above other similar AI because of increased intelligence.

In other news…

🌐 AirMyne has tapped into the power of geothermal energy to scale innovations around air carbon capture.

💡 Israel’s REGO Automotive has developed a new tactical, all-terrain vehicle called PATROLX that takes a “significant leap forward” in off-road capabilities, according to REGO’s representatives.

DEALS & FUNDING

President Biden announced a massive $19.5 billion boost for U.S. chip production, aiming to raise America's global share in advanced chips to 20%. Celebrating the deal in Arizona, he hailed it as bringing the future back to America.

Spike in Production: Biden says that domestic chip production will increase from zero to 20%, showing a rapid growth spike, as America, braced by near-peer competition, aims to increase independence from foreign chip producers.

Chips Key To America’s Future: The president addressed his belief that continued development of domestic chips is key to a prosperous future for the United States, signaling the drive to sow massive funding campaigns into domestic chip production.

In other news…

🤖 Microsoft has appointed Mustafa Suleyman to lead its consumer AI division, aiming to solidify its leadership in the rapidly expanding AI sector.

🧬 Cure51 plans to use its funding to create a data cohort to investigate why some cancer patients outlive others with aggressive forms of the disease. This effort aims to address gaps in current oncology databases related to survivorship, granularity, and ethnic diversity.

😇 CyberSaint has secured $21 million in Series A funding, elevating its total capital to $29 million. This funding round, led by Riverside Acceleration Capital, will support the company's growth in cyber risk management.