Section: Macleans (Canada)
Canada ratifies cluster bomb convention after half-decade of controversy
OTTAWA – The Harper government has ratified an international treaty to ban deadly cluster bombs, after more than half a decade of controversy. Canada signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions in 2008, but dragged its heels on ratifying it in the face of widespread international complaints, including from the usually neutral International...
From oil to the dollar, today is another wild economic ride
Once again, oil is going low, low, low. After speculation the price of oil had stabilized around $50, the price of West Texas Intermediate – the U.S. benchmark – is once again on a precipitous slide, as it becomes clear just how much oil the U.S. is producing. So much, in fact, that they are running out of storage space. This morning, the price...
Russian TV doc on Crimea send a clear message: Putin is in charge
(Photo by Sasha Mordovets/Getty Images) MOSCOW — Even while Vladimir Putin was still mysteriously absent, Russian TV delivered a clear message for Russians and foreigners alike: Putin is firmly in charge, and ready to use his country’s military power to safeguard the interests of Russia and Russians. A lavish 2 1/2-hour documentary on...
Putting Putin’s army to the test
Maxim Zmeyev/Reuters Ukrainians suffering as a result of Russia’s ongoing invasion of their country might want to blame Georgia. The small, former Soviet nation in the Caucasus bears no direct responsibility for Russia’s attack on Ukraine, but in many ways Georgia’s own war with Russia in 2008 helped make it possible. In less...
For Ukrainian children, war-games invade playtime
KHARTSYZK, Ukraine – Seryozha colours in his drawing of a tank, lost in thought. Like many 7-year-olds in eastern Ukraine, he has trouble recalling a time before the war. “They’ve always been shooting,” he says, vigorously scratching with the brightest of pencils. Yelena Nikulenko, the director of the children’s home in the rebel-held...
Failed banking stress tests and a bleak spring for Ukraine
Are there calmer shores ahead? On Tuesday, major currency moves between the dollar the euro – as the ECB’s asset-buying program kicked in and a strong jobs report gave weight to questions about when the Fed will hike interest rates – pushed the euro down and the dollar up, and spurred equity sell-offs around the world. But today, European...
Stephen Harper’s four rules of super-awesome diplomacy (Hint: More pandas.)
Photo Illustration by Sarah MacKinnon and Richard Redditt TV shows like House of Cards make international diplomacy look tricky and nuanced. But it’s easy when you do it the Stephen Harper way! Just follow these four guidelines: Be assertive. In fact, be more than assertive; be aggressive to the point of recklessness. It’s important...
The greenback goes up – and global markets go down
Will today bring a turnaround for the world’s stock markets? That’s the question this morning, after a day of sharp losses in global equity yesterday. Major indexes in the US, Europe and Asia all fell, while the TSX/S&P Composite Index lost more than 200 points, and the Loonie was down more than half a cent at closing. The force...
Ten dead after helicopters crash while filming reality TV show
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Two helicopters carrying French sports stars filming a popular European reality show crashed in a remote part of Argentina, killing 10 people, including two Olympic medal winners and a sailing champion, authorities said. The helicopters apparently collided in midair Monday near Villa Castelli in La Rioja province, about...
Would the Conservative party have violated C-51? Maybe(?)
Last week, the Conservative party posted an image and excerpt from Al-Shabaab’s threat against the West Edmonton Mall, the party apparently hoping to solicit support for C-51, the Anti-Terrorism Act. Press Progress, the media wing of the Broadbent Institute, subsequently wondered if this would’ve amounted to a transgression against...
