Section: National Newswatch (Canada)
A western ultimatum to Putin: Drop support for Assad, or remain a pariah
WASHINGTON — Western countries are presenting a high-stakes ultimatum to Russia: Allow regime-change in Syria and cut loose Bashar Assad, or remain a pariah moored on the fringes of the international community. Different U.S. allies articulated different versions of that warning Tuesday, including Canada. During a G7 meeting in Italy, Foreign...
Defence deal could open the door to weapons sales to Ukraine
The Trudeau government has signed a defence co-operation agreement with Ukraine, a seemingly mundane bit of statecraft that could have far-reaching implications for the eastern European country’s bid to buy Canadian-made weapons. The bilateral deal, signed this week by Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan and his Ukrainian counterpart Stepan...
US ambassador: No question Russia meddled in election
WASHINGTON — The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations says there’s no question Russia was involved in the U.S. presidential election and that the actions of the Kremlin will be addressed after the investigations are completed. “We don’t want any country involved in our elections, ever,” Nikki Haley said in an interview...
Liberals stick to their guns as U.S. again calls for NATO allies to spend more
OTTAWA — The Trudeau government has sent its strongest signals yet that Canada does not plan to bow to U.S. pressure to dramatically increase what it spends on defence. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson warned at his first NATO meeting in Brussels on Friday that the Trump administration wants allies to draw up plans for boosting defence...
PM sticks to his guns amid fresh calls from U.S. for NATO allies to spend more
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau doubled down Friday in his defence of Canadian military spending levels, as the U.S. brought fresh pressure to bear on NATO allies to pony up. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson used his first NATO summit in Brussels to demand that all allies come up with a plan to increase the amount they spend on...
PM defends military spending in face of new U.S. calls for allies to pony up
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is doubling down in his defence of the amount of money that Canada spends on its military in the face of fresh pressure from the United States. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has given all NATO allies until May to come up with a plan for increasing the amount they spend on defence to two per cent of...
Russia, Ukraine at odds over singer’s Eurovision performance
GENEVA — Eurovision song contest organizers say they have taken the unprecedented step of offering to let Russia’s contestant perform via satellite after authorities in host Ukraine banned her from entering the country — a proposal that was immediately rejected by a Russian state broadcaster. The European Broadcasting Union says it’s...
Anatomy of a Fox fake news story
How does a patently false claim from the lips (or tweet) of Donald Trump get legitimized to the point where many Americans think it’s true? In one word–Television. Television is how most Americans get their news. Six out of every 10 Americans say it’s their main source of news. Perhaps more relevant, for those over 50 that figure...
Finance minister defends military budget; forces ‘appropriately provisioned’
OTTAWA — The federal finance minister is standing by the amount of money the Liberal government currently spends on defence, saying the military is “appropriately provisioned” to address Canada’s needs. In an interview Thursday with The Canadian Press, Finance Minister Bill Morneau left the door open to future...
Finance minister defends military budget; forces ‘appropriately provisioned’
OTTAWA — The federal finance minister is standing by the amount of money the Liberal government currently spends on defence, saying the military is “appropriately provisioned” to address Canada’s needs. In an interview Thursday with The Canadian Press, Finance Minister Bill Morneau left the door open to future...
