AHEPA update

 

American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association

Attention all AHEPA Family members, Delegates, Alternates and Guests! Tomorrow, Friday, June 23, 2023 is the final cut off for reservations at the Paris and Horseshoe Resorts in Las Vegas for the 101st AHEPA Supreme Convention at the AHEPA rate. The rates for these hotels will skyrocket after tomorrow, so if you have not yet made your reservations, DO SO TODAY! For your convenience, I've included links to all of our convention materials below.

Book Your Hotel Room!

Register as a Delegate, Alternate or Guest!

Review the Tentative Convention Agenda!

Want to get out of the hotel and take a break from the convention floor, or are you bringing family or friends who need something to do while you're in your meetings? Las Vegas has plenty to offer, whether it be a tour of the Grand Canyon or going to see a show on the famous Las Vegas strip! Click the links below to see some of what's available! You will also be able to book extra activities (not affiliated with AHEPA) via concierge at the hotel you choose to stay at.

See what else you can do in Las Vegas!

Buy Tickets for a Vegas Show!

We are all excited to see all our chapters and members again! Make your arrangements to be part of the summer fun!   Fraternally, Basil AHEPA E-News Volume 17, Issue 25 | Wednesday, June 21, 2023 AHEPA Family Takes Its Message to Capitol Hill After a three-year hiatus, we did not lose a step as we hosted a successful Capitol Hill Day on June 15, 2023! The day began with a Kick-Off Reception that included a briefing and remarks delivered by members of the Congressional Caucus on Hellenic Issues: Co-Chairs Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Chris Pappas (D-NH) and Vice-Chairs Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) and Dina Titus (D-NV). U.S. Reps. John Sarbanes (D-MD) and Grace Meng (D-NY) also stopped by and chatted with our advocates, who came from coast to coast. Afterwards, Hill Day advocates dispersed and walked the halls of Congress and met with well over 40 congressional offices to discuss the foreign and domestic policy priorities that are vital to the AHEPA family's mission. These include: strong U.S. relations with Greece and Cyprus, holding Turkey accountable for its illegal and provocative actions that are not in the U.S. interests, and strong investment for affordable housing for older adults and programs that provides lifesaving services to survivors of domestic violence and their families. The top objective of the day, however, was to work to grow the Congressional Hellenic Caucus. During the day, the group gathered for a photo on the Capitol steps. They were joined by U.S. Reps. John Sarbanes (D-MD), who helped to arrange the photograph; Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Grace Meng (D-NY), Daniel Goldman (D-NY), and Pat Ryan (D-NY). (Photo credit: House Photographer Phi Nguyen) On the eve of Capitol Hill Day, June 14, AHEPA hosted a reception on the occasion of the "Global Chiefs of Mission" Conference being held in Washington at the Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill. U.S. Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), who serves as chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, attended and addressed the audience. U.S. Ambassador to Greece George Tsunis and U.S. Ambassador to Cyprus Julie Fisher, also delivered remarks, commenting on the hard work of AHEPA. U.S. Rep. Donald Payne, Jr. (D-NJ), whose father, Donald, also was a U.S. representative and an Ahepan; spoke movingly about his father's legacy and following in his footsteps as a public servant. AHEPA has a long tradition reaching out to our elected officials from town council to President of the United States. AHEPA was the first Greek American organization to meet with President Calvin Coolidge in 1923. Presidents Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, and Gerald Ford, Vice President Hubert Humphrey, and U.S. Senators John Glenn, Paul Sarbanes, Paul Tsongas, George Voinovich, Claiborne Pell, Robert Kennedy, among many other Senators and U.S. representatives, have held membership in AHEPA.  Our connection to our elected officials spans our 100 year history and our Capitol Hill day events, which began in earnest in 2006, perpetuated this at last week's event. Thanks to all the members who travelled far and wide to participate!

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION's update

 

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IMF COUNTRY FOCUS

 

Latin America and the Caribbean Interest in Central Bank Digital Currencies Picks Up in Latin America and the Caribbean While Crypto Use Varies Photo Credit: IMF/Melissa Alcena By Rina Bhattacharya, Dmitry Vasilyev, and Mauricio Villafuerte Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) are at the forefront of digital money adoption, offering valuable lessons for the rest of the world. While El Salvador has made headlines by granting legal tender status to Bitcoin, other LAC countries have made significant strides in the introduction of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) to either enhance financial inclusion and payment systems’ resilience or lower cross-border remittances’ costs, as our recent research shows. The Bahamas pioneered the introduction of a CBDC with the Sand Dollar in 2020, and the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) and Jamaica have followed suit. Brazil’s CBDC project is also in the advanced Proof-of-Concept stage, seeking to enhance “asset tokenization” by turning assets, such real estate, stocks, and commodities, into digital representations to facilitate their transfer and increase their liquidity. Notably, four Latin American countries—Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, and Ecuador—ranked in 2022 among the top 20 in global adoption of crypto assets. They seek the benefits that digital assets claim to offer, including protection against uncertain domestic macroeconomic conditions, circumvention of capital controls, improved financial inclusion for unbanked populations, cheaper and faster payments, and stronger competition. However, crypto asset adoption also presents numerous challenges and risks, particularly for vulnerable LAC countries with a history of macroeconomic instability, low institutional credibility, substantial capital flows, corruption, and extensive informal sectors. Twelve out of nineteen jurisdictions in the region surveyed for our paper in mid-2022 either already have a special regulatory framework in place or are in the process of creating one. Adopting crypto

WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION's latest

 

22 Jun 2023 Latest news

Dear maria CHADZIDAKIS VAVOURANAKIS, Below are the news items published today on the WTO public website

NEWS ITEM DG Okonjo-Iweala to business leaders: We must push for re-globalization and reform In her keynote address to the 13th World Chambers Congress in Geneva on 21 June, Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said the multilateral trading system works but that parts of it need reform. She also underlined the risk to global prosperity if trade fragments into rival blocs and reiterated her call for “re-globalization” rather than deglobalization. News item   ⟶

NEWS ITEM First members to formally accept Fisheries Subsidies Agreement urge others to follow suit WTO members that are among the first 10 to formally accept the Fisheries Subsidies Agreement called on other members to do the same to ensure entry into force of the historic agreement for ocean sustainability. Ambassadors and high-level representatives of Canada, the European Union, Iceland, Nigeria, Singapore, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates and the United States highlighted the Agreement’s importance to a variety of economies and shared experiences with domestic acceptance processes at the 21 June event “WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies — Race to Entry into Force.” News item   ⟶

NEWS ITEM One year on from MC12, WTO Chairs Programme holds Annual Conference A year after the successful 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) and with an eye on MC13 early next year, the WTO is playing host to the Annual Conference of the WTO Chairs on 21-23 June, with a focus on the needs and interests of developing and least developed country (LDC) economies. The WTO Chairs Programme (WCP) aims to enhance knowledge and understanding of the trading system among academics and policy makers in developing and LDC economies through curriculum development, research and outreach activities by universities and research institutions. News item   ⟶   NEWS ITEM DG Okonjo-Iweala sets up civil society and business advisory groups Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala today (21 June) announced the establishment of two advisory groups, one comprising leaders from the business community and the other bringing together prominent civil society representatives. The establishment of these groups aims to strengthen the Director-General’s engagement with businesses and civil society. They will provide an informal platform for the exchange of views and discussions with key stakeholders. News item   ⟶   NEWS ITEM Members hold robust discussions on implementing Trade Facilitation Agreement At a meeting of the Committee on Trade Facilitation on 15 and 16 June, WTO members shared their experiences across a range of trade facilitation matters, including transit activities for landlocked developing countries, disaster preparedness and recent progress on the implementation of the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA). News item   ⟶   NEWS ITEM WTO dispute panel issues report regarding Chinese duties on Japanese steel products On 19 June, the WTO circulated the panel report in the case brought by Japan in “China — Anti-Dumping Measures on Stainless Steel Products from Japan” (DS601). Panel report   ⟶

NATO latest

 

NATO Secretary General meets with the President of Montenegro On Thursday 22 June 2023, the NATO Secretary General, Mr. Jens Stoltenberg, received the President of Montenegro, Mr. Jakov Milatović, at NATO Headquarters. Click here to download the joint press conference by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg with the President of Montenegro Jakov Milatović. The transcript is available here. German Army practises rapidly reinforcing NATO’s eastern flank Germany recently showed its ability to surge forces to the east of the Alliance, demonstrating NATO’s ability to deter potential adversaries and, if necessary, defend its territory on short notice. Roughly 1,000 soldiers and 320 vehicles from the German Army’s 41st Panzer Grenadier Brigade were rapidly deployed to Lithuania for exercise Griffin Storm 23, arriving via rail, road and sea. Now established at Pabrade Training Area near the capital Vilnius, the troops will train with their counterparts from the Lithuanian Army until 7 July. The 41st Panzer Grenadier Brigade is a mechanised infantry unit, blending the firepower of heavy mortars with the speed of infantry fighting vehicles. They will join forces with the Lithuanian Army’s Grand Duke Algirdas Infantry Battalion to plan and execute joint training operations. Click here to download the b-roll. Footage includes shots of a civilian ferry arriving at the port of Klaipeda, unloading of the vehicles and march to the Pabrade Training Area.