Section: National Newswatch (Canada)
John Baird to resign as foreign affairs minister and not run again
OTTAWA – John Baird, one of Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s most trusted and high-profile cabinet ministers, is resigning his foreign affairs post and will not seek re-election later this year.Multiple Conservative sources tell The Canadian Press that Baird announced the news Monday, shocking even some of his cabinet colleagues.It is...
Canada to help train Ukraine’s military police
OTTAWA – Defence Minister Rob Nicholson says Canada is joining the US-Ukraine Joint Commission on Defence Reform and Bilateral Co-operation.In a statement Monday night, Nicholson said the move will help to better co-ordinate Canada’s ongoing provision of assistance to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.He says the joint commission is the most...
Malaysian official makes recommendations to ICAO
MONTREAL – Malaysia’s civil aviation chief is issuing a number of recommendations in light of two unprecedented tragedies involving his country’s major airline.In his opening remarks today, Azharuddin Abdul Rahman told a high-level international safety meeting in Montreal the fact that an airplane could go missing and flight...
German Chancellor Angela Merkel to visit Ottawa next week
Prime Minister Stephen Harper says German Chancellor Angela Merkel will visit Ottawa next Monday. The Prime Minister’s Office says the she will discuss a broad range of issues, including preparations for the upcoming G7 summit in Germany and the economic potential of the Canada-European Union Trade Agreement. Security issues, including...
Ukraine rebel leader Zakharchenko ‘to raise 100,000 men’
Pro-Russian separatist leader Alexander Zakharchenko has announced plans to recruit 100,000 men, as fighting with Ukrainian forces intensifies. The separatists are trying to capture the key town of Debaltseve, while central areas of rebel-held Donetsk have been hit by artillery fire. Dozens of civilians were killed on both sides of the front line...
ICAO holds high level safety meeting this week
MONTREAL – The International Civil Aviation Organization will hold a high-level safety meeting this week to look at the global tracking of commercial aircraft and flights over conflict zones. More than 800 participants are expected to attend the four-day international gathering at ICAO’s Montreal headquarters.The United States,...
Romney’s final flip-flop: No 2016 run
WASHINGTON – Mitt Romney’s presidential dream died as it lived — with a final, dramatic flip-flop.Romney has completed his second U-turn on the question of whether he’ll run in 2016 and is back where he started: He’s not running for president anymore.His announcement Friday came after a weeks of heavy public flirtation...
Arctic Council meeting sets up awkward Russian visit to Canada
The federal government is set to host a high-level Russian delegation on Canadian soil in April, despite a deep freeze in relations between the two countries over the crisis in Ukraine. The Russian officials will be participating in an Arctic Council meeting in Iqaluit, during which Canada will complete its two-year chairmanship of the...
Gorbachev warns Cold War could heat up to all-out war
Ex-Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev says the confrontation between Russia and the West could spill into all-out war. More than 5,100 people have been killed in a bloody conflict in eastern Ukraine between government troops and pro-Russian separatists. Ukraine accuses Russia of aiding the separatists while Russia says the West is behind...
Canada providing $200M loan to Ukraine
OTTAWA – Canada will provide another low-interest, $200-million loan to Ukraine to help promote economic stability.The government says the loan will come from Export Development Canada.The loan agreement includes a provision enabling Canada to audit how the money is used and requires Ukraine to provide regular reports on the...
