MSC 2024: US VP Kamala Harris reaffirms NATO commitment

German defense contractor Rheinmetall on Saturday announced that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with a Ukrainian company to open an ammunition manufacturing facility in Ukraine.

Citing security concerns, no specifics were given as to where the factory would be located and who the Ukrainian partner is.

Rheinmetall will maintain a 51% share of the joint venture, with 49% held by its Ukrainian partner.

Ukrainian Industry Minister Alexander Kamyshin and Rheinmetall CEO Armin Pappberger signed the agreement on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference (MSC).

Pappberger said the venture represented a, "significant contribution to Ukraine's defense capacity and will enhance Europe's security."

Rheinmetall, one of the world's largest manufacturers of artillery and tank shells, said it hoped to be able to produce hundreds of thousands of rounds of 155 mm caliber ammunition at the facility, though it did not say when production would begin.

In October, Rheinmetall announced another joint venture with Ukrainian state company UDI, this one to repair Western military vehicles, with plans to eventually produce armored vehicles in Ukraine.

On Monday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz attended a groundbreaking ceremony for yet another Rheinmetall venture, a munitions factory in the northern German town of Unterluss.

The factory is slated to begin producing up to 200,000 NATO-standard 155 mm shells annually after it opens in 2025.

Rheinmetall says it aims to produce some 700,000 shells annually across its European facilities.

It currently produces between 400,000 and 500,000 each year, up from 70,000 prior to Russia's February 2022 invasion of neighboring Ukraine.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held "candid and constructive" talks on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.

"The two sides had a candid and constructive discussion on a range of bilateral, regional and global issues as part of ongoing efforts to maintain open lines of communication and responsibly manage competition in the relationship," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.

Those issues included peace in the Taiwan Strait, the situation in the Middle East, counternarcotics efforts and North Korea, he added.

Blinken "reiterated that the United States will stand up for our interests and values and those of our allies and partners," Miller said.

In addition to the talks with Wang, Blinken also spoke with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.

An unnamed US official told the AFP news agency that Blinken brought up the prospect of a Russian anti-satellite weapon at both meetings and "emphasized that the pursuit of this capability should be a matter of concern."

"He will continue raising it in additional meetings at the Munich Security Conference," added the official.

US Vice President Kamala Harris has reassured allies that Washington would continue to take a leading role in global security.

"In these unsettled times, it is clear America cannot retreat," she told the Munich Security Conference.

Her address comes after former US President Donald Trump questioned the value of the NATO military alliance, and recently suggested that he would encourage Russia to attack allies who fail to pay enough for defense.

"I know that there are questions here in Europe and around the world, about the future of America's role of global leadership," Harris said.

But she said it is in Washington's interest to fulfill its "long standing role of global leadership" and described her and Joe Biden's commitment to NATO as "sacred" and "ironclad."

"Our leadership keeps our homeland safe, supports American jobs, secures supply chains, and opens new markets for American goods," Harris added.

"And I firmly believe our commitment to build and sustain alliances has helped America become the most powerful and prosperous country in the world."

Alexei Navalny's wife, Yulia, urged the interational community to fight against this "horrific regime" in Russia.

She was already in Munich when Russian officials announced that her husband had died in prison on Friday.

"I don't know if we should believe this terrible news we have heard," she said, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin and his government lie "incessantly."    

She said Putin must be punished for "atrocities" against Navalny and Russia.   

"I'd like Putin and all his staff... to know that they will be punished for what they have done with our country, with my family and with my husband," she said. 

"We should fight this horrific regime in Russia today. Vladimir Putin should be personally held for all the atrocities they have committed in our country in the last years."

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned that the world was becoming increasingly divided despite "existential challenges" like the climate crisis. 

"Even the Cold War era was, in some ways, less dangerous," he said, citing the ability of the United States and Soviet Union to work on nuclear arms reduction despite being rival superpowers.

"Today, in our multipolar world, we still face the nuclear danger. And we are dealing with two more threats with existential dimensions:
the climate crisis, and the risks of uncontrolled artificial intelligence."

Guterres called on the international community "to take effective steps" on those risks.

"Today we see countries doing whatever they like, with no accountability," Guterres said, blaming a lack of "strong global institutions."

World leaders and top officials are arriving in the southern German city of Munich on Friday to attend the three-day security summit. 

More than 180 high-ranking government representatives are taking part in the meeting, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US Vice President Kamala Harris. 

Russia's war in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war are the main topics at the conference. Also on the agenda are discussions on conflicts in East Africa, the strength of international law as the basis for coexistence, a possible reform of the UN Security Council and climate security.

Less than an hour before the conference officially kicked off, Russian officials announced that Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny had died in prison. 

Conference chair Christoph Heusgen commented on Navalny's reported death at the opening of the event. "A very special man, our thoughts are with his wife and children today," said Heusgen.      

Navalny's wife Julia "is even in Munich, she wanted to take part in the conference and talk about a better Russia," Heusgen continued, speaking in English. 

fb/wd (Reuters, AP, AFP, dpa)