Section: National Newswatch (Canada)
Finance minister defends military budget, says forces ‘adequately 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...
Trump’s ex aide Paul Manafort ‘hid’ $750,000 payment
Further allegations have been made in Ukraine about secret funds said to have been paid to Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort. Lawmaker Serhiy Leshchenko said he had evidence that Mr Manafort had tried to hide a payment of $750,000 (£600,800) by a pro-Russian party in 2009. Mr Manafort’s spokesman denied the...
Closer US-Russia ties uncertain as Tillerson plans trip
WASHINGTON — With Russia-tinged investigations swirling around his administration, President Donald Trump has yet to fulfil a campaign pledge of closer co-operation with Moscow. A planned trip by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to Russia could test if detente proves anything more than talk. In a move alarming U.S. allies, Tillerson plans to skip...
New documents show Trump aide laundered payments from party with Moscow ties, lawmaker alleges
A Ukrainian lawmaker released new financial documents Tuesday allegedly showing that a former campaign chairman for President Trump laundered payments from the party of a disgraced ex-leader of Ukraine using offshore accounts in Belize and Kyrgyzstan. The new documents, if legitimate, stem from business ties between the Trump aide, Paul Manafort,...
Of Nazi collaboration and Russian disinformation
The controversy over Chrystia Freeland’s family background can be confounding. No, our foreign minister isn’t answerable for her Ukrainian-born grandfather, who edited a propaganda outlet for the Nazis in occupied Krakow. Yes, the Russians are playing a dirty game of demonization by spreading incriminating stories about her distant...
Canadian wins $1M global award for teaching excellence
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A Canadian school teacher whose teaching philosophy underscores hope and acts of kindness in an isolated corner of Quebec won a $1 million prize Sunday in what has become one of the most-coveted and high-profile awards for teaching excellence. Maggie MacDonnell was awarded the annual Global Teacher Prize during a...
New Canadian men’s soccer coach Octavio Zambrano comes with experience and style
TORONTO — Octavio Zambrano watched the 2006 World Cup as a fan, opting to mix in some travelling once his native Ecuador was knocked out by a David Beckham free kick. He eventually decided on Denmark over Finland and Sweden and ended up in a Copenhagen cafe watching the Ukraine-Italy quarter-final. It was there he met his wife, a Russian who was...
Freeland condemns Russian aggression in Crimea, prompting Kremlin counterattack
Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland strongly condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “severe repression of human rights” in occupied Crimea on Thursday, spurring a toughly worded counterattack from the Russian embassy in Ottawa. Ms. Freeland issued a statement Thursday on the third anniversary of Russian forces annexing Crimea,...
Chrystia Freeland and the Russian disinformation bogeyman
The controversy over whether Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland’s grandfather was a Nazi collaborator says a little about her. It says more about the West’s current fascination with Russian disinformation. The basic facts about Michael Chomiak’s activities during the Second World War are now well known. A Ukrainian...
Small Nova Scotia community chosen as launch site for space rockets
CANSO, N.S. — An isolated community on Nova Scotia’s eastern coast could soon be home to the only commercial spaceport in Canada. Maritime Launch Services Ltd. announced Tuesday that it has committed to establishing a launch complex near Canso and Hazel Hill. The Halifax-based company, which is a joint venture of three U.S.-based firms,...
