National Guard Grounds Helicopters:
VOLT NEWS NETWORK ||Morning News 02/27/24||
Good Afternoon, and welcome to your Top Stories Today:
Today’s Top Stories focus on the Army National Guard grounding helicopter operations, China urging nuclear powers to agree to a treaty, and New York City’s sanctuary policies:
In response to multiple recent helicopter crashes involving National Guard units, the Army National Guard has grounded all of its helicopter operations across the country to conduct a comprehensive safety review. This directive from Army National Guard Director Lt. Gen. Jon Jensen comes after a fatal Apache helicopter crash in Mississippi that killed two pilots in February, as well as another non-fatal Apache incident in Utah. Jensen stated that safety is always the top priority given the Guard’s combat operations worldwide. The grounding is intended to ensure aircrews are as well prepared as possible. Investigations into the causes of the recent crashes are ongoing. This action follows previous deadly Army helicopter accidents in the past year involving Black Hawk helicopters that prompted senior leader concerns about aviation safety across the service. The duration of the current review process was not specified.
At a meeting of the United Nations Conference on Disarmament in Geneva, China’s director general of the arms control department Sun Xiaobo called on the largest nuclear weapon states to negotiate a treaty committing to no first use of nuclear weapons against each other. Sun stated that as the countries with the most significant nuclear arsenals, states like the U.S. and Russia have a special responsibility under the UN to pursue nuclear disarmament and prevent nuclear war. He urged them to negotiate a formal treaty or make a political statement establishing a no first use policy, similar to the stance already held by China and India. Additionally, Sun advocated for a universal arms control regime to address emerging threats from new technologies like AI and address compliance issues for prohibiting proliferation of chemical and biological weapons. He noted the challenges posed by some states repeatedly withdrawing from arms control agreements to pursue military dominance.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams appeared to walk back his support for some aspects of the city’s sanctuary policies during a town hall meeting. In video footage from the meeting, Adams said the sanctuary laws should be modified to allow officials to deport undocumented immigrants who commit felonies or violent crimes. Adams said his hands are largely tied on other issues related to the influx of migrants because of federal and state laws. He acknowledged receiving criticism for not stopping buses of migrants from entering the city or allowing them to work, but explained those actions would be illegal. Adams touted how New York has managed the migrant crisis compared to other cities by not allowing tent encampments or families to sleep on the streets. However, the mayor has faced challenges as the city deals with housing and supporting the large number of immigrants arriving amid controversy over policy shifts and recent attacks involving some undocumented individuals.
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