Canada Day 2025: Are you proud to be Canadian? What is your biggest issue living in this country? Vote and share your view of the country
This year, Canada Day is more than just a celebration: it's a chance for citizens to reflect on who we are, our values and what direction we are headed in as a country.
Canada is approaching its 158th birthday in the midst of uncertainty — both at home and abroad. U.S. President Trump's trade war left the nation unsettled with a long-time ally. Threats to the country's sovereignty - a push to make it America's "51st state" - has sparked frustrations. A minority Liberal government with Prime Minister Mark Carney is still dealing with mounting economic challenges across the country. Despite that, a fresh wave of patriotism continues: citizens are 'Buying Canadian', changing their view on relations with American neighbours, and rethinking Canada's place on the global stage.
With this spirit in mind, Yahoo News Canada is launching My Canada, a series focused on influential and everyday citizens across the country sharing their views on what makes them proud, challenged, frustrated and...truly Canadian.
But first, we want to hear from you. What are your views of Canada, and its reputation? Are you proud to be a Canadian?
Share your views with this series of questions, and check back on July 1, 2025 for the results.
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Yahoo
9 minutes ago
- Yahoo
They call it ‘Merzcron': The EU's Franco-German engine is powering up once again
The clasped hands of French and German leaders have long embodied the spirit of European unity – most famously in 1984, when François Mitterrand and Helmut Kohl stood hand-in-hand at Verdun in a symbol of reconciliation. So, when Chancellor Friedrich Merz grasped President Emmanuel Macron's hand on the steps of the Élysée palace in early May – a handshake that was long, warm, and accompanied by backslapping – it wasn't just a photo-op. It was the clearest sign yet that Europe's most important alliance was back in motion. After years of sputtering and frustration under Olaf Scholz, the Franco-German engine is humming again, and it has a new name: Merzcron. Since Merz's election, the two have met six times – most recently with other NATO leaders at The Hague. They will sit down together again on Thursday at the European Council meeting in Brussels. Their shared agenda: to drive the European Union response on security, Ukraine and Trump-era uncertainties, and shape Europe's role on the global stage. Ahead of Wednesday's NATO summit, Macron and Merz laid out their vision in a joint opinion piece in the Financial Times. 'In these testing times, Germany and France - together with our European and transatlantic friends and allies - stand united and strong, to defend our common values as well as the freedom and security of our citizens,' they wrote. They outlined plans to boost defense spending – aiming to reach 3.5% of GDP in core military investments – and to deepen cooperation between NATO and the EU, calling for a stronger, more sovereign Europe that is no longer reliant on others for its security. They pledged to ensure Ukraine emerges 'prosperous, robust and secure,' and warned that European stability for decades to come hangs in the balance. The signs are that the powerful 'Mercron' or 'Merkozy' alliance, portmanteaus derived from the names of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Macron and his predecessor Nicholas Sarkozy, is evolving into an equally influential 'Merzcron.' The two-day European Council summit now underway in Brussels, hot on the heels of a G7 meeting in Canada and the NATO leaders' summit in The Hague, is the first of Merz's chancellorship. It will likely be another demonstration of how strong this union could be. CNN spoke to two stalwarts of the Franco-German partnership – former French President Francois Hollande, who worked closely with Merkel, and Wolfgang Ischinger, a former German deputy secretary of state once described as Europe's most connected former diplomat – to assess its significance for Europe and the world. Under Scholz, the former German chancellor, the Berlin-Paris axis became strained, something that both Ischinger and Hollande noted. Stefan Seidendorf, director at the Franco-German Institute in Ludwigsburg, Germany, said Scholz spent so much time doing 'domestic homework' that he was never able to fully focus on Europe. The three-way coalition he headed was beset with infighting on domestic and Europe issues and eventually collapsed in November last year, triggering an early election. However, there were also some interpersonal issues at play. 'It was difficult for Macron to get along with this very Protestant, northern German, not very emotional, not into the big symbols of political leadership,' Siedendorf told CNN in a phone interview. He added that the same went for Scholz, 'who found it difficult to get along with this French president living in the palace of Élysée with all the gold and the glitter and the ceremony.' But neither was Macron and Merz's friendship a given, considering their different styles. Macron, 47, is Jupiterian and theatrical, hailed by some as a visionary, dismissed by others as a narcissist. Merz, 69, is impulsive, prickly under pressure and occasionally leans into populist bluster. That said, Ischinger said both leaders 'met rather easily – and got their act together.' Speaking about their shared character traits, he said they 'love interaction. They enjoy difficult questions. These two have a way of understanding each other – they are open.' The clearest display of 'Merzcron' in action has been around support for Ukraine. Hollande told CNN the duo had already been 'effective' on the issue. Their recent trip to Kyiv, alongside British and Polish leaders Keir Starmer and Donald Tusk, 'was a symbol of a new kind of determined getting-together of the major European powers to make progress,' Ischinger said. Paris has long been more hawkish than Berlin on its support for Ukraine. Macron has been a strong proponent of boots on the ground in the country and has allowed Ukraine to fire French-made long-range missiles deep into Russia. However, Hollande said, 'we've seen that Merz's position is a bit different from that of his predecessor… including on the delivery of missiles capable of reaching Russian territory.' Since taking office, Merz has welcomed Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky to Berlin and unveiled a new $5 billion package for Ukraine that includes joint co-operation in the development of long-range missiles capable of being fired deep into Russia, some of which could be online by the end of the year. 'Now we're in perfect unity,' Ischinger said of the Franco-German alignment on Ukraine. Russia's unease over a more coordinated Franco-German approach to Ukraine is already starting to show. News of last month's visit to Kyiv by Merz and Macron was accompanied by the release of a photo taken ahead of a meeting between them. Sitting on the table was a white tissue. Its presence sparked an online rumor, amplified by Kremlin officials and later traced back to pro-Russian accounts, that falsely claimed the crumpled tissue – which Macron picked up and pocketed – was a cocaine bag. The Élysée countered by saying 'when European unity becomes inconvenient, disinformation goes so far as to make a simple tissue look like drugs. This fake news is being spread by France's enemies, both abroad and at home.' US President Donald Trump's return to the White House has also forced a new alignment between the European powerhouses, particularly on the issue of Europe's security. The Trump administration's insistence that Europe should do more to defend itself triggered the shift, Hollande explained, saying that it 'forced France and Germany to work together diplomatically and militarily, whereas until then, their main alignment had been on monetary issues. 'Today there is a shared responsibility. Germany must do more for its defense, and France must be willing to share a number of proposals and initiatives – including on defense – with Germany,' Hollande says. Before even formally taking office, Merz managed to push through the reform of Germany's constitutional debt brake to unlock over half a trillion dollars in defense spending. He has also committed to creating Europe's largest army. Both represent a major shift for Germany. Previously, Hollande suggested, those moves might have been difficult for France to stomach. 'We used to be very reluctant about German rearmament. That was a politically sensitive issue after the war. But today, no one in France fears German rearmament –we welcome it,' he said. Macron and Merz also appear to have taken a similar approach to dealing with Trump. Both have had effusive and positive meetings in the Oval Office with a president who has not always been so welcoming to visiting leaders. Paris and Berlin are also trying to revive the decades-old 'Weimar Triangle.' Established after German reunification in 1991, it aimed to bring Poland deeper into the European fold, led by Germany and France. Ischinger feels the relative weight of the European Union has shifted eastwards due to the war in Ukraine, meaning that Warsaw, now more than ever, must now be a vital ally for Paris and Berlin. 'Harmony (between France and Germany) is key, but it's not sufficient,' he said. 'The center of gravity of the good old European Union was somewhere between France and Germany. But today, almost half of the members are to the east of Germany,' he added, and giving Poland more say is the best way to bring the continent together. That shift, too, is already playing out. As well as taking part in the Kyiv trip, Tusk has found himself directly involved in European talks with Trump, as the US president has attempted to broker an end to the Russia-Ukraine war. Poland's status as Europe's fastest growing economy, its commitment to NATO defense spending – way above other member states' at 4.2% of GDP in 2024, projected to rise to 4.7% this year – and its geographic location bordering Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, have made the nation a key nexus for the continent. Nonetheless, for Hollande, 'Europe only moves forward when France and Germany speak with one voice and pull in the same direction. Only then can the European machine function properly.' Ischinger added: 'If Franco-German cooperation works well, you have a perfect precondition to get the entire European Union underway, moving forward.' For now, the 'Merzcron' engine is firing up and, if it keeps its momentum, it could pull the rest of Europe into gear.
Yahoo
9 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Iran's leader issues claims of victory over Israel and the U.S.
"I offer my congratulations on the victory over the fallacious Zionist regime," a message posted Thursday on Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's X account declared. Another post added the bold claim that Israel's government "was practically knocked out and crushed under the blows of the Islamic Republic." In a recorded video address to his nation — his first public remarks since the U.S.-brokered ceasefire with Israel took effect on Tuesday — Khamenei went further, suggesting a "large number of military and other targets" in Israel had been targeted by Iran's missiles. They may have been targeted, but in reality, Iran's 12 days of missile launches saw relatively few rockets evade Israel's air defenses. A total of 28 people were killed, and none of them have been identified as government officials, but rather civilians killed when missiles struck apartment buildings and cities. Israel's strikes on Iran killed at least 30 military commanders, on the other hand, and, in combination with the U.S. strikes over the weekend, "obliterated" the country's nuclear program, according to President Trump. The U.S.-based group Human Rights Activists in Iran, which relies on a network of sources in the country, said Wednesday that the strikes had killed at least 1,054 people in Iran, including a total of 318 military personnel. Khamenei also claimed Iran had given "the U.S. a big slap in the face" by attacking the Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar, which is home to thousands of American forces. But none of the roughly dozen missiles Iran fired at the sprawling base hit it. They were intercepted, despite the ayatollah's assertion of "lots of damage" to the site. Assessing Iran's nuclear program, and cooperation with the IAEA While full assessments of the damage inflicted are still being compiled, the heads of two U.S. intelligence agencies said Wednesday that "new" intelligence indicated the Iranian nuclear enrichment program was likely set back by "years." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said earlier Wednesday that the country's own intelligence assessment showed Iran's nuclear program was put back "many years." Khamenei offered a very different take on Thursday — again, without any specifics or evidence. He claimed the U.S. had joined in Israel's strikes "as it felt if it did not do so, the Zionist regime would get totally annihilated, so they entered the war to prevent this." "They did not manage to do anything important to our nuclear facilities," he claimed, adding that Mr. Trump had "overplayed the whole thing." Iran, in the wake of the ceasefire, has adopted legislation that will effectively forbid the country's government from cooperating in any way with the International Atomic Energy Agency. The United Nations' nuclear watchdog agency has for decades been the only outside entity given access to Iran's nuclear facilities, for monitoring purposes, and it has experts still in the country. Iranian state media said Thursday that the legislation was approved by the senior clerics of the Guardian Council and thus had the "weigh of law." Khamenei, who has the ultimate say on all matters in Iran, did not mention the IAEA in his video address on Thursday. On Thursday, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi told a French news podcast that the agency's assessment, based largely on photographic evidence and its unique and deep familiarity with Iran's nuclear sites, was that the U.S. and Israeli strikes had caused "very significant physical damage to three sites: Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordo, where Iran had concentrated most of its activities related to uranium enrichment and conversion." He said he was still in communication with senior Iranian officials and had suggested a meeting with the country's foreign minister, "to begin evaluating the arrangements for the [IAEA] inspectors' return to the [nuclear] sites." Grossi said he had yet to receive any reply, noting "some tension right now" between the agency and Iran's leadership, given "political voices in Iran who believe the agency hasn't been impartial." The IAEA chief said he was "enormously" concerned by the Iranian government's decision to halt cooperation with the IAEA. "The agency's presence in Iran is not some kind of generous gesture. It is an international responsibility. Iran is a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and therefore must have an inspection system. It is a legal obligation from the point of view of international law, which cannot be suspended unilaterally," Grossi said. "I hope that will not be the case, because otherwise we would be on the verge of a new major crisis." Anxiety in Iran fueling the ayatollah's claims? Khamenei's remarks on Thursday were heavy on rhetorical flourish and virtually devoid of any facts, and they may have been aimed more at Iran's people than the wider world. Iran's theocratic rulers, who swept to power with the 1979 Islamic Revolution that toppled a pro-Western government lead by the royal family of the shah, have long maintained tight control over all media in the country, and many Iranians have little access to outside information. Still, especially among younger, more tech-savvy generations, there is an understanding of the degree to which Iran's people do not enjoy the freedoms that many other countries guarantee — and it has led to several popular protest uprisings over the last decade. All of them have been brutally quashed by the authorities, but Netanyahu called very quickly after Israel started bombing Iran for new anti-government protests in the country, urging Iranians to take advantage of the attacks, which he said had put the ayatollah in his weakest position ever. Khamenei has yet to be seen live or in public since the ceasefire, and his precise whereabouts remained unclear Thursday after the pre-recorded video message was released. While the ceasefire enabled Israelis to revel on Wednesday in a return to normalcy, with the lifting of 12 days of war-time security measures, in Tehran, anxiety still appeared rife. CBS News correspondent Imtiaz Tyab and his team were granted Iranian visas to enter the country earlier in the week, and they were the first American broadcast network to enter Tehran since the war began. But it took them an arduous journey through arid landscapes and across the border from Turkey to reach Iran's capital, as the country's airspace had been closed. Tyab said the Iranian capital felt very different this week compared to his previous visit about five years earlier, when, despite the government's authoritarian control over daily life, it was a vibrant metropolis. On Thursday, despite the truce, most businesses remained shut, and the sense of nervousness was palpable. Young Cuban girl asks Trump to lift travel ban stopping her from joining mom in U.S. Why are U.S. adults eating less fast food? Closing arguments set to begin in Sean "Diddy" Combs trial
Yahoo
9 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Departing US top official in Hong Kong criticises reach of national security law
By Jessie Pang HONG KONG (Reuters) -The top American diplomat in Hong Kong on Thursday criticised Hong Kong's use of the national security law to jail prominent campaigners for democracy, including media tycoon Jimmy Lai, and engage in the "transnational repression" of activists abroad. Gregory May, the departing consul general of the United States in Hong Kong, who is coming to the end of a three-year stint in the city, spoke about recent turbulence in the U.S-China relationship and highlighted various "friction points" including Lai's case. Lai, 77, has pleaded not guilty to two charges of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces under the national security law, as well as a separate charge of conspiracy to publish seditious material. He has been held in solitary confinement for more than 1,500 days since December 2020. "President Trump himself has mentioned Jimmy Lai several times now and he's very concerned about the fate of Mr. Lai," May told reporters after a speech at a U.S. Independence Day reception. "But I just want to emphasise the U.S. government concern is not just on this one individual. There are many other people, unfortunately, in Hong Kong who are in jail for peaceful expression of political views." Lai, whose family say his health is fragile, faces a possible life sentence under a China-imposed national security law that was implemented in 2020 in response to mass pro-democracy protests the year before. U.S. President Donald Trump has previously said he would "one hundred percent" get Lai, who also has British citizenship, out of the country. May, who will be leaving to take up a position as deputy head of the U.S. mission in Beijing, also criticised attempts by Hong Kong authorities to pressure overseas Hong Kong activists including the issuing of arrest warrants for national security violations and offering bounties of HK$1 million ($127,393) each. "The other friction point in my time here has been transnational repression, and it's very disappointing to see over my three years here, attempts by Hong Kong authorities to enforce the national security law within the borders of the United States against U.S. persons," May said. These are "attempts to restrict the free speech of people in the United States and unfortunately we're seeing Hong Kong authorities go after the family members of these overseas activists and that's a very disturbing development," he added. On the broader China-U.S. relationship, May said Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping both wanted to get the bilateral relationship on "a positive track", a goal he would work towards in Beijing under the new U.S. ambassador to China David Perdue. ($1 = 7.8497 Hong Kong dollars) (Writing by James Pomfret; Editing by Kate Mayberry)
