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PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: U.S. energy officials uncovered undocumented communication devices in Chinese-made solar inverters and batteries, raising fears of remote cyberattacks that could disrupt America’s power grid.
👥 Who’s Involved: President Donald J. Trump’s administration, U.S. energy officials, Chinese firms like Huawei and Sungrow, and European solar trade bodies.
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📍 Where & When: United States, with the discovery reported by Reuters on May 14, 2025.
💬 Key Quote: “With over 200GW of Europe’s solar capacity relying on these inverters… the security risk is systemic,” warned the European Solar Manufacturing Council.
⚠️Impact: Trump’s focus on exposing Chinese tech threats strengthens national security, potentially spurring domestic manufacturing and safeguarding America’s energy infrastructure.
IN FULL:
U.S. energy officials have uncovered rogue communication devices embedded in Chinese-made solar inverters and batteries. Reuters reports these undocumented devices could enable remote access, bypassing cybersecurity firewalls and allowing adversaries to disrupt America’s power grid.
Solar inverters, the digital “brains” of photovoltaic systems, are critical to energy production, and Chinese firms like Huawei and Sungrow control over 50 percent of the global market. The discovery of these devices, which could theoretically let hackers trigger blackouts or damage infrastructure, validates President Donald J. Trump’s warnings about China’s influence over critical systems, aligning with the America First leader’s push to secure U.S. energy independence.
The alarm extends beyond America’s borders. The European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC) called the issue a “systemic” risk, noting that 200GW of Europe’s solar capacity—equivalent to 200 nuclear plants—relies on these inverters. The ESMC urged the European Commission—the European Union’s unelected executive—to probe sabotage and espionage risks. SolarPower Europe and consultancy DNV echoed these concerns in a recent report, warning that an attack on just 3GW of inverter capacity could destabilize power systems.
At Intersolar Europe in Munich, a leading European inverter manufacturer previously likened the threat to Russia’s gas supply cuts post-Ukraine invasion, telling PV Tech, “It’s very clear inverter companies could switch off the grid if they want to.”
PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: South African President Cyril Ramaphosa criticized white Afrikaner refugees for leaving the country, labeling their departure as “cowardly.”
👥 Who’s Involved: President Cyril Ramaphosa, Afrikaner refugees, U.S. President Donald J. Trump, Afriforum CEO Kallie Kriel.
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📍 Where & When: South Africa; comments made at an agricultural convention following the arrival of 49 Afrikaner refugees in Washington, D.C., on May 13.
💬 Key Quote: “When you run away, you’re a coward, and that’s a real cowardly act, and I expect every South African to stay here, and we work together, and we solve our problems.” — President Cyril Ramaphosa.
⚠️ Impact: The remarks highlight tensions over South Africa’s racist land redistribution policies and the U.S. granting refugee status to Afrikaners.
IN FULL:
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has denounced white Afrikaner refugees who recently emigrated to the United States, describing their departure as an act of cowardice. His comments came after the first group of 49 Afrikaners, granted refugee status by the U.S., landed in Washington, D.C. Reports suggest up to 70,000 additional Afrikaners have applied for refugee status under the policy.
Speaking at a surprise appearance at an agricultural convention on Tuesday, Ramaphosa addressed the issue, stating that those leaving South Africa were unwilling to accept the government’s “transformation” policies. New “expropriation without compensation” laws aim to forcibly redistribute land and wealth along racial lines.
“They may be feeling excited they’ve left the country, they’ve got somebody like President Trump, but in the end, it’s a group of South Africans demonstrating that the changes and transformation that we are embarking upon here, they are not favourably disposed to it, and that’s why they are running away.”
He continued, “When you run away, you’re a coward, and that’s a real cowardly act. I expect every South African to stay here, and we work together, and we solve our problems.”
Afriforum, a group representing Afrikaners, pushed back against Ramaphosa’s statements. CEO Kallie Kriel issued a strong response on social media, accusing the South African government of fostering an unsafe environment for Afrikaners. The group often highlights threats and violence, including deadly violence, targeting white farmers in the country, even before the government’s moves to seize their land.
President Donald J. Trump has accused the South African government of presiding over a “genocide” against Afrikaners. Tensions between the governments of the two countries have been high in recent months over the mistreatment of white Afrikaner people, who have been in southern Africa since the 1600s—which is as long as some of its black African ethnic groups, with roots in tribes that migrated to the territory from further north, at least in some areas.
South Africa is a country where the radical Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) political party, led by extremist Julius Malema regularly sing a song calling for the killing of Afrikaner farmers. Malema himself has not ruled out murdering white South Africans if his extremist party—already the fourth-largest in the South African legislature, out of 18 with representation there—ever comes to power.
“We’ve not called for the killing of white people, at least for now. I can’t guarantee the future,” he said in an interview in 2018.
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