Carney, Zelenskyy talk as world leaders prepare for Trump-Putin summit on Ukraine war
U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are preparing to meet in person in Alaska on Friday.
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Calgary Herald
32 minutes ago
- Calgary Herald
Finland charges 'Russian shadow fleet' ship captain over Baltic cable sabotage
Article content Helsinki — The captain and two senior officers of a ship believed to belong to Russia's so-called shadow fleet have been charged with sabotage for cutting five Baltic Sea cables in December, Finnish prosecutors said Monday. Article content The crew members of the Cook Islands-registered oil tanker Eagle S were alleged to have dragged the ship's anchor on the seabed for around 90 kilometres, damaging five undersea cables in the Gulf of Finland. Article content Article content Article content They have been charged with 'aggravated criminal mischief and aggravated interference with communications,' the office of Finland's Deputy Prosecutor General said in a statement. Article content Article content The office did not disclose the nationalities of the accused, but Deputy Prosecutor General Jukka Rappe told AFP many of the crew had been Indian and Georgian nationals. Article content The criminal investigation was launched after the EstLink 2 submarine power cable and four telecommunications cables connecting Finland and Estonia were damaged on Dec. 25. Article content 'The owners of the cables have suffered a total of at least 60 million euros (US$70 million) in immediate damage in the form of repair costs alone,' the statement said. Article content The Eagle S is believed to belong to the Russian shadow fleet — old tankers used to skirt restrictions on Russian oil exports. Article content The disruption 'is also suspected to have caused a serious risk to energy supply and telecommunications in Finland,' according to the statement. Article content Article content Having denied the offences during the investigation, the defendants — who are currently banned from leaving Finland — have argued that Finland has no jurisdiction in the case, because the cuts took place outside Finnish territorial waters. Article content Article content But according to Rappe, since the cable cuts 'seriously endangered important functions of society,' Finnish jurisdiction applies in the case. Article content 'Considering that these are cables with extremely high capacity, the danger was obvious,' he said. 'So the act can be considered to have been committed in Finland, even though the cable was cut outside Finnish territory.' Article content According to Rappe, a trial should begin within two weeks. Article content Tensions have mounted around the Baltic Sea since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Article content A series of underwater blasts ruptured the Nord Stream pipelines that carried Russian gas to Europe in September 2022, the cause of which has yet to be determined.
Globe and Mail
2 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
Ottawa launches consultation with development industry on design for Build Canada Homes
Ottawa is asking the development industry for input on how to design its new housing entity, Build Canada Homes. Prime Minister Mark Carney first introduced BCH during the election campaign with a promise to double the country's homebuilding and get the federal government back in the business of building properties. But very little has been revealed about how BCH will operate, including whether it will actually become a federal developer and construct homes. In a six-page document made public on its website Monday, the Housing Ministry says BCH could act as a developer in varying capacities. That includes potentially working with contractors, operators, investors and other developers to build housing, develop land, procure materials, share risks and provide expertise, according to the document posted on the Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada website. The document outlines options for BCH, such as contracting builders to construct housing and leasing it to affordable-housing providers, as well as acting as a facilitator to bring together land and financing to help get a project off the ground. The document does not say whether BCH would takeover some of the functions of federal housing agency Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. – which was part of the plan outlined in the Carney campaign's housing pledge. In terms of financing, the document said one of BCH's objectives would be ensuring that there are low-interest loans and contributions for the development of affordable-housing projects. Another initial objective would be ensuring long-term commitments and financial partnerships that would allow the affordable-housing sector to 'plan and scale with confidence,' the document said.
Winnipeg Free Press
3 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
New federal entity to prioritize Canadian-made, affordable housing projects
OTTAWA – Prime Minister Mark Carney's promised new entity to spur massive amounts of housing construction will prioritize the building of affordable housing and the use of Canadian materials, says a consultation document published by the government on Monday. The document shared by Canada's housing department says Build Canada Homes is also intended to accelerate the speed at which federal lands are converted to housing, and to stress the use of materials, manufacturing and construction methods that reduce the cost and environmental impact of building. It says financial and non-financial tools being explored include loans, equity investments, real property and housing investments, loan guarantees and contributions. The department is still working on the program's design and says it's accepting feedback from the public until the end of the month. The document, released as part of a consultation process with builders and other industry stakeholders, says Build Canada Homes is positioned to support projects that deliver a 'significant number' of affordable housing units. It also says the government will look at projects that expand the supply of housing run by organizations like co-ops, non-profits and Indigenous housing providers. The document says the government will look for opportunities to use Canadian-made materials and regional production hubs, and to boost the efficiency of public dollars through tools like below-market-rate loans or private or philanthropic capital. It will also prioritize projects that use new methods of construction, like prefabricated or 3D-printed construction. Housing affordability was a major issue in the recent federal election, as there haven't been enough homes built in Canada to keep up with population growth. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation said in a June report that Canada needs to build between 430,000 and 480,000 new housing units over the next decade, to bring housing costs back to where they were before the pandemic. Carney promised in his election platform that his government would invest $6 billion in the Build Canada Homes initiative. The platform said Build Canada Homes would act as a developer to build affordable housing at scale, including on public lands. It also promised to provide over $25 billion in financing to prefabricated homebuilders in Canada, support affordable homebuilders and incentivize companies to hire apprentices and recent graduates by establishing new requirements on federal contribution agreements to major projects. Caroline Desrochers, parliamentary secretary to the minister of housing and infrastructure, said in a recent interview with The Canadian Press that the government is exploring options for Build Canada Homes, which could potentially become a separate agency or a unit within Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada. She said the government is aiming to launch the program in the fall and is 'going to start doing work right now with what we have already' while exploring the best governance for the entity. Desrochers said the goal is to not create 'more layers of bureaucracy and approvals.' Desrochers said representatives from the government and the CMHC are on a task force created to develop the options for the new program. She said the government is also in discussion with several promoters and modular and prefabricated home companies to see what projects are ready for funding and to be built. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 11, 2025.
