
Spain's leader sticks by decision to break with NATO on spending despite Trump tariff threats
MADRID (AP) — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez walked away from this week's NATO summit with an opt-out from spending more on defense. He also left with fresh threats of tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump.
On Thursday, the progressive Spanish leader stuck by his decision to break with NATO allies and responded to Trump's comments by pointing out that the European Commission — and not Spain — was who decided the bloc's trade policy.

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Winnipeg Free Press
23 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Major projects: How Bill C-5 works and why it alarms its critics
OTTAWA – Parliament has passed controversial major projects legislation that Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada needs to shore up its economy in the face of a trade war with the United States. Bill C-5 gives the federal government sweeping new powers to speed up permitting for what the Liberals call 'nation-building projects.' The legislation's opponents have attacked the legislation as a massive power grab. Here's what's C-5 does and what people are saying about it. What problem is this trying to solve? Canada has built few large projects over the past decade. That has led Conservatives, some provinces and some industry groups to argue that Ottawa's regulatory burdens are holding back growth. The Liberals tried to streamline project approvals through Bill C-69, an impact assessment law meant to resolve environmental and Indigenous concerns upfront to keep projects from getting tied up in the courts. Critics say the legislation has actually been holding back major infrastructure projects since it became law in 2019. Federal Conservatives have dubbed the law the 'No More Pipelines Act' and it's deeply unpopular in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Carney was elected in April with a mandate to diversify Canada's economy and ensure exports can more easily reach countries beyond the U.S. Ottawa has also promised to build up northern infrastructure, in part to meet a NATO military alliance spending target for critical infrastructure. Carney said Bill C-5 'creates the ability to flip … the attitude towards those projects once they are selected, once conditions are put in place — how those projects can move forward, as opposed to why.' Which projects could be fast-tracked? We don't know yet. The government has pointed to ports, railways and sometimes pipelines. The Ontario government has suggested a major commuter highway tunnel could qualify as a nation-building project. What are the provinces doing? Some provinces have also passed legislation aimed at speeding up development. Ontario's government has given itself the right through Bill 5 to designate 'special economic zones' where it can suspend everything from safety rules to environmental and labour standards, with a focus on mining projects. British Columbia's Bill 15 similarly allows the province to expedite the construction of anything from critical mineral mines to local hospitals. What's in the federal bill? The legislation has two main parts. The first part looks to eliminate barriers to interprovincial trade and labour mobility and work to harmonize various regulations across the country. It also allows Ottawa to decide that goods and services that have met one province's requirements can be deemed to have met 'comparable federal requirements' when moving interprovincially. That might involve things like energy efficiency standards on household appliances. The main part of the bill relates to fast-tracking approvals for projects that Ottawa decides are 'in the national interest.' The government says that decision is meant to be based on five criteria, including whether the project can 'strengthen Canada's autonomy, resilience and security,' help fight climate change or 'advance the interests of Indigenous peoples.' Getting that seal of approval would clear all federal approvals for the project — including virtually all environmental laws — while requiring the proponent to fulfil obligations set out by Ottawa. Why the rush? The government fast-tracked Bill C-5 with support from the Conservatives, and the House delivered the bill to the Senate with a programming motion that effectively required the upper chamber to vote on it by Friday. One senator's attempt to split the bill into separate votes was rejected when the Speaker concluded that it wasn't possible at such a late stage. Critics have been calling for a deeper review of the bill, arguing there is no need to rush it through because proposed fast-track projects won't start work before Parliament returns from its summer break. The government also could have had Parliament sit through the summer, instead of sending MPs and senators home for 12 weeks. How do Indigenous Peoples feel? Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. There is widespread opposition to the legislation among First Nations, Inuit and Métis leaders, who argue elements of it could be used to undermine their rights. The Assembly of First Nations says the government's plan to set up advisory councils after the bill becomes law does not give real power to Indigenous communities on the ground, and they're upset that the bill didn't mention a UN declaration Ottawa has endorsed that promises those communities 'free, prior and informed consent.' Some Indigenous communities have welcomed the legislation, including some Alberta communities with economic stakes in energy projects and the Manitoba Métis Federation. Others say they are ready to undertake widespread, disruptive protests against specific projects. — With files from Kyle Duggan This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 26, 2025.


Toronto Star
32 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
Iran's Khamenei resurfaces to warn against future U.S. attacks in first statement since ceasefire
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Thursday that his country had delivered a 'slap to America's face' by striking a U.S. air base in Qatar and warned against further attacks in his first public comments since a ceasefire agreement with Israel. Khamenei's prerecorded speech that aired on Iranian state television, his first appearance since June 19, was filled with warnings and threats directed toward the United States and Israel, the Islamic Republic's longtime adversaries.


Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
US signs agreements with Guatemala and Honduras to take asylum seekers
GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemala and Honduras have signed agreements with the United States to potentially offer refuge to people from other countries who otherwise would seek asylum in the United States, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Thursday at the conclusion of her Central America trip. The agreements expand the Trump administration's efforts to provide the U.S. government flexibility in returning migrants not only to their own countries, but also to third countries as it attempts to ramp up deportations. Noem described it as a way to offer asylum-seekers options other than coming to the United States. She said the agreements had been in the works for months. with the U.S. government applying pressure on Honduras and Guatemala to get them done. 'Honduras and now Guatemala after today will be countries that will take those individuals and give them refugee status as well,' Noem said. 'We've never believed that the United States should be the only option, that the guarantee for a refugee is that they go somewhere to be safe and to be protected from whatever threat they face in their country. It doesn't necessarily have to be the United States.' During U.S. President Donald Trump's first term, the U.S. signed such accords called safe-third country agreements with Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala. They effectively allowed the U.S. to declare some asylum seekers ineligible to apply for U.S. protection and permitted the U.S. government to send them to those countries deemed 'safe.' The U.S. has had such an agreement with Canada since 2002. The practical challenge was that all three Central American countries at the time were seeing large numbers of their own citizens head to the U.S. to escape violence and a lack of economic opportunity. They also had extremely under-resourced asylum systems. In February, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio signed deals with El Salvador and Guatemala that allowed the U.S. to send migrants from other nations there. But in Guatemala's case it was to only be a point of transit for migrants who would then return to their homelands, not to apply for asylum there. And in El Salvador, it was broader, allowing the U.S. to send migrants to be imprisoned there. Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum said Tuesday that Mexico would not sign a third safe country agreement, but at the same time Mexico has accepted more than 5,000 migrants from other countries deported from the U.S. since Trump took office. She said Mexico accepted them for humanitarian reasons and helped them return to their home countries. The U.S. also has agreements with Panama and Costa Rica to take migrants from other countries though so far the numbers sent have been relatively small. The Trump administration sent 299 to Panama in February and fewer than 200 to Costa Rica. The agreements give U.S. authorities options, especially for migrants from countries where it is not easy for the U.S. to return them directly. __ Sherman reported from Mexico City.