ZeroFox Physical Security Intelligence Daily Brief - January 28, 2024

ZeroFox Physical Security Intelligence Daily Brief - January 28, 2024

ZeroFox physical security experts collect, curate, and analyze information derived from open and proprietary sources for comprehensive context of the circumstances surrounding global events. Here is today’s daily roundup of major developments.

Brief Highlights

• Senate Foreign Relations Committee Advances Bill to Seize Frozen Russian Assets
• Demonstrations by Farmers in France Expand
• Taltic States Plan to Build New Defenses on Russian and Belarusian Borders

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Advances Bill to Seize Frozen Russian Assets

The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee advanced legislation that would allow the United States to seize frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine's reconstruction efforts. The bill, titled the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity (REPO) for Ukrainians Act, would mark the first time the United States has seized the assets of a foreign country it is not at war with. The committee approved the bill in a bipartisan 20-1 vote; the legislation will now advance to the Senate floor. Several other countries are also weighing options to use Russian assets to fund reconstruction efforts in Ukraine. The European Union is considering legislation that would allow member states to place a windfall tax on Russian assets, and appropriate tax revenue to Ukraine.

Demonstrations by Farmers in France Expand

On January 23, French farmers expanded their protests in the south of the country, blocking the A7, A16 and A62 motorways. Organizers accuse the government of passing environmental laws and consumer price reduction measures threatening their livelihood. The demonstrations began on January 18 and will probably continue in the coming weeks. Currently, farmers have blocked several major roads leading to the cities of Toulouse, Lyon, and Bordeaux. Expect significant transportation delays if traveling by motor vehicle in the south of France. In addition, a protesting farmer was killed on January 23 after a car crashed into a roadblock near the city of Palmiers in the Ariège region. According to a preliminary investigation, this action was not deliberate but has raised tensions between authorities and demonstrators.

Baltic States Plan to Build New Defenses on Russian and Belarusian Borders

On January 19, the three Baltic states - Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania - signed an agreement to build new defenses along their borders with Russia and Belarus. The defenses will consist of concrete bunkers and other anti-mobility obstacles to slow Russian or Belarusian forces in the event of a ground invasion. The Estonian defense ministry said this agreement arose out of the consensus formed at the NATO summit in Madrid in 2022 that the alliance will defend itself from the first meter of its territory.