NATO leaders gather Tuesday for what could be a historic summit, or one marred by divisions
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump and his NATO counterparts are due to gather Tuesday for a summit that could unite the world's biggest security organization around a new defense spending pledge or widen divisions among the 32 allies.
Just a week ago, things had seemed rosy. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte was optimistic the European members and Canada would commit to invest at least as much of their economic growth on defense as the United States does for the first time.
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Winnipeg Free Press
18 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Prime Minister Carney in Brussels today for EU-Canada summit
BRUSSELS – Prime Minister Mark Carney is in Belgium today, where he visited a military cemetery before meeting with European Union leaders at an EU-Canada summit. Carney said on social media Sunday that he was in Brussels to launch 'a new era of partnership' between Canada and the European Union for the benefit of workers, businesses and security 'on both sides of the Atlantic.' Carney started the day with a visit to the Antwerp Schoonselhof Military Cemetery where 348 Canadian soldiers are buried. Later, he is expected to meet with Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Carney posted on social media early on Monday that he spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump overnight, noting the conversation addressed the need to de-escalate the conflict in the Middle East, their shared commitment of a stronger NATO and progress in ongoing trade talks between Canada and the United States. At the EU-Canada summit, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand and Defence Minister David McGuinty are expected to sign a security and defence agreement with the European bloc in what one European official described last week as one of the most ambitious deals the continent's powers have ever signed with a third country. The security and defence agreement aims to open the door to Canada's participation in the joint purchase of weapons with European countries. It will also lead to Canada's participation in the ReArm Europe initiative, allowing Canada to access a 150-billion-euro program for defence procurement, called Security Action for Europe. Canada will need to sign a second agreement with the European Commission before it can take part in the program. A government official briefing reporters on the trip said the partnership is expected to make procurement easier and more affordable, while also allowing Canada to diversify the sources of equipment. At the EU-Canada summit, leaders are also expected to issue a joint statement to underscore a willingness for continued pressure on Russia to end its war on Ukraine, including through further sanctions, and call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. The joint statement is also expected to touch on climate change, trade and digital and tech policy. Leaders at the EU-Canada summit are also slated to discuss global trade and commit to working towards full ratification and implementation of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, the Canada-Europe free trade deal known as CETA. Monday Mornings The latest local business news and a lookahead to the coming week. The pact took effect provisionally in 2017, and most of its contents now apply. But all EU countries need to approve CETA before it can take full effect, with 10 members still left to ratify the deal. Carney, Costa and von der Leyen are scheduled to hold a joint press conference in the evening. On Tuesday, Carney travels to The Hague for the NATO summit. The international meetings come as Canada looks to reduce its defence procurement reliance on the United States due to strained relations over tariffs and U.S. President Donald Trump's repeated talk about Canada becoming a U.S. state. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2025.
Winnipeg Free Press
18 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
In the news today: Carney in Brussels for EU-Canada summit
Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed… Carney in Brussels for EU-Canada summit Prime Minister Mark Carney is in Belgium today, where he will visit a military cemetery before meeting with European Union leaders at an EU-Canada summit. Carney said on social media Sunday that he was in Brussels to launch 'a new era of partnership' between Canada and the European Union for the benefit of workers, businesses and security 'on both sides of the Atlantic.' He begins the day with a visit to the Antwerp Schoonselhof Military Cemetery where 348 Canadian soldiers are buried. At the EU-Canada summit, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand and Defence Minister David McGuinty are expected to sign a security and defence agreement with the European bloc in what one European official described last week as one of the most ambitious deals the continent's powers have ever signed with a third country. The security and defence agreement aims to open the door to Canada's participation in the joint purchase of weapons with European countries. Here's what else we're watching… Ontario and Quebec continue to fight high heat Much of Ontario and southwestern Quebec will continue to bake in high temperatures Monday and Tuesday as a heat dome lingers over the region. Environment Canada issued a heat warning for the area on Saturday, saying hot and humid conditions will likely continue until Wednesday. In Toronto, the agency says the city saw a daytime high of 35 C on Sunday, with the humidex making it feel like 46 degrees at times. The dangerously high temperatures are expected to affect communities from southwestern Ontario and north to Sudbury and Timmins. People are encouraged to drink plenty of water to stay hydrated and be on alert for early signs of heat exhaustion. Alberta votes to decide Nenshi seat in legislature Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi is looking to finally win a seat in the legislature after a year of sitting on the sidelines. He's running in one of three provincial byelections today as a candidate in Edmonton-Strathcona, where his predecessor Rachel Notley last won 80 per cent of the vote. In Edmonton-Ellerslie, NDP candidate Gurtej Singh Brar could solidify the opposition party's hold on the city, but United Conservative Party candidate Naresh Bhardwaj is hoping to make an inroad. In rural central Alberta, the separatist Republican Party of Alberta is aiming to capitalize on discontent with Ottawa. Republican leader Cameron Davies has been campaigning in Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills against the UCP's Tara Sawyer, the NDP's Bev Toews and Bill Tufts of the Wildrose Loyalty Coalition. The seat became vacant after former legislature speaker and long-time UCP member of the legislature Nathan Cooper resigned to take a post as Alberta's representative in Washington, D.C. Hudson's Bay to seek approval to sell three leases Hudson's Bay is expected back in court this morning where it will ask a judge to let it sell three of its leases to a B.C. mall owner. The defunct department store wants to transfer its leases for Tsawwassen Mills, Mayfair Shopping Centre and Woodgrove Centre to Ruby Liu. The real estate maven, who leads a company that owns all three malls, has offered $6 million for the trio of leases. She also wants up to 25 more leases at malls she does not own but Hudson's Bay is still working on getting approval from landlords, who are overwhelmingly objecting. Aside from the request to sell three leases to Liu, the Ontario Superior Court will also be asked to change the name of the department store company in creditor protection to avoid confusion that could arise now that Canadian Tire owns the rights to the Bay name. Ontario proposes to weaken pending recycling rules Ontario Premier Doug Ford's government is proposing to weaken an impending slate of new recycling rules because producers of the materials said the system is getting too expensive. The province began transitioning in 2023 toward making producers pay for the recycling of their packaging, paper and single-use items. The companies' obligations were set to increase next year, but the government is now looking to delay some measures and outright cancel others, such as requirements to extend collection beyond the residential system. Environmental advocates say the proposed changes let producers off the hook and will mean more materials will end up in landfills or be incinerated. Producers say despite the rising costs, recycling rates don't actually appear to be improving, so it's time for a broader rethink. Environment Minister Todd McCarthy said the proposed changes are about ensuring the sustainability of the blue box system and protecting against unintended consequences such as job losses. The Canadian Retail Council estimates that producer costs have already increased by about 350 per cent in three years and would nearly double again just from this year to next if no changes were made to the impending new rules for 2026. The government says blue box collection costs could more than double between 2020 and 2030. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2025.
Winnipeg Free Press
23 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Okinawa marks 80 years since end of one of harshest WWII battles with pledge to share tragic history
TOKYO (AP) — Okinawa marked the 80th anniversary of the end of one of the harshest battles of World War II fought on the southern island. With global tensions escalating, its governor said on Monday it is the Okinawan 'mission' to keep telling the tragic history and its impact today. The Battle of Okinawa killed a quarter of the island's population, leading to a 27-year U.S. occupation and a heavy American troop presence to date. Monday's memorial comes one day after U.S. attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities, adding to a sense of uncertainty on the island about the heavy American military presence and in its remote islands, already worried about getting embroiled in a potential conflict in Taiwan. Gov. Denny Tamaki, noting the escalating global conflicts and nuclear threats, made a resolve to contribute to global peace studies, disarmament and the preservation of war remains. 'It is our mission, as those living in the present, to preserve and pass on the reality and lessons to future generations.' Fierce battle and civilian deaths U.S. troops landed on the main Okinawa island on April 1, 1945, beginning a battle in their push toward mainland Japan. The Battle of Okinawa lasted nearly three months, killing some 200,000 people — about 12,000 Americans and more than 188,000 Japanese, half of them Okinawan civilians including students and victims forced into mass suicides by Japan's military. Okinawa was sacrificed by Japan's Imperial Army to defend the mainland, historians say. The island group remained under U.S. occupation until its reversion in 1972, two decades longer than most of Japan. Monday's memorial was held at the Mabuni Hill in Itoman City, where the remains of most of the war dead reside. Remembering the tragedy Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba was in a hot seat when he attended Monday's ceremony. Weeks earlier, one of his ruling party lawmakers Shoji Nishida, known for whitewashing Japan's wartime atrocities, denounced an inscription on a famous cenotaph dedicated to students as 'rewriting history' by portraying the Japanese army as having caused their deaths, while Americans liberated Okinawa. Nishida also called Okinawa's history education 'a mess.' His remark triggered an uproar in Okinawa, forcing Ishiba days later to apologize to the island's governor, who had criticized the remark as outrageous and distorting history. The Himeyuri Cenotaph commemorates student nurses who were abandoned near the end of the battle and killed, some in group suicides with teachers. Japan's wartime military told the people never to surrender to the enemy, or die. Nishida's remarks add to concerns about the whitewashing of Japan's embarrassing wartime past as memories of the tragedy fade and ignorance about the suffering grows. Ishiba, at Monday's memorial, said Japan's peace and prosperity is built on the sacrifices of Okinawa's history of hardship and that it is the government's responsibility to 'devote ourselves to achieve a peaceful and prosperous Okinawa.' Postwar years and growing fear Okinawa remained under U.S. occupation from 1945 until the 1972 reversion to Japan. The U.S. military maintains a heavy presence there due to Okinawa's strategic importance for security in the Pacific. Their presence serves not only to help defend Japan but also for missions elsewhere, including in the South China Sea and the Middle East. Private properties were confiscated to build U.S. bases, and the base-dependent economy has hampered the growth of local industry. Fear of a Taiwan conflict rekindles bitter memories of the Battle of Okinawa. Historians and many residents say Okinawa was used as a pawn to save mainland Japan. There are also ancient tensions between Okinawa and the Japanese mainland, which annexed the islands, formerly the independent kingdom of the Ryukus, in 1879. Burden of history Okinawa remains home to the majority of about 50,000 U.S. troops stationed in Japan under a bilateral security pact. The island, which accounts for only 0.6% of Japanese land, hosts 70% of U.S. military facilities. Even 53 years after its reversion to Japan, Okinawa is burdened with the heavy U.S. presence and faces noise, pollution, aircraft accidents and crime related to American troops, the governor said. Nearly 2,000 tons of unexploded U.S. bombs remain in Okinawa, with some regularly dug up. A recent explosion at a storage site at a U.S. military base caused minor injuries to four Japanese soldiers. Remains of hundreds of war dead are still unrecovered on Okinawa, as the government's search and identification effort is slow to make progress.
