Trump threats could drive higher voter turnout in federal election, experts say
A "generational" election — that's how some political observers are describing the race unfolding in ridings across Canada right now. The stakes are high, with U.S. President Donald Trump threatening both Canada's economy and sovereignty. That could lead to higher turnout at the polls as Canadians decide which party is best equipped to tackle the threat, experts say. CBC Windsor's Emma Loop explains.
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CTV News
36 minutes ago
- CTV News
Israel and Iran trade strikes for a third day as nuclear talks are called off
A man looks at flames rising from an oil storage facility after it was hit by an Israeli strike in Tehran, Iran, early Sunday, June 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi) DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Israel unleashed airstrikes across Iran for a third day on Sunday and threatened even greater force as some Iranian missiles evaded Israeli air defenses to strike buildings in the heart of the country. Planned talks on Iran's nuclear program, which could provide an off-ramp, were canceled. The region braced for a protracted conflict after Israel's surprise bombardment of Iran's nuclear and military sites on Friday killed several top generals and nuclear scientists, and neither side showed any sign of backing down. Iran said Israel struck two oil refineries, raising the prospect of a broader assault on Iran's heavily sanctioned energy industry that could affect global markets. The Israeli military, in a social media post, warned Iranians to evacuate arms factories, signaling what could be a further widening of the campaign. Around noon local time, explosions were heard again in the Iranian capital, Tehran. U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed full support for Israel's actions while warning Iran that it can only avoid further destruction by agreeing to a new nuclear deal. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday that if the Israeli strikes on Iran stop, then 'our responses will also stop.' He said the United States 'is a partner in these attacks and must take responsibility.' Explosions in Tehran New explosions echoed across Tehran and were reported elsewhere in the country early Sunday, but there was no update to a death toll released the day before by Iran's UN ambassador, who said 78 people had been killed and more than 320 wounded. In Israel, at least 10 people were killed in Iranian strikes overnight and into Sunday, according to Israel's Magen David Adom rescue service, bringing the country's total death toll to 13. The country's main international airport and airspace remained closed for a third day. Israeli strikes targeted Iran's Defense Ministry early Sunday after hitting air defenses, military bases and sites associated with its nuclear program. The killing of several top generals and nuclear scientists in targeted strikes indicated that Israeli intelligence has penetrated Iran at the highest levels. Death toll mounts in Israel In Israel, at least six people, including a 10-year-old and a nine-year-old, were killed when a missile hit an apartment building in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv. Daniel Hadad, a local police commander, said 180 people were wounded and seven are still missing. An Associated Press reporter saw streets lined with damaged and destroyed buildings, bombed out cars and shards of glass. Responders used a drone at points to look for survivors. Some people could be seen leaving the area with suitcases. Another four people, including a 13-year-old, were killed and 24 wounded when a missile struck a building in the Arab town of Tamra in northern Israel. A strike on the central city of Rehovot wounded 42. The Weizmann Institute of Science, an important center for research in Rehovot, said 'there were a number of hits to buildings on the campus.' It said no one was harmed. Israel has sophisticated multi-tiered air defenses that are able to detect and intercept missiles fired at populated areas or key infrastructure, but officials acknowledge it is imperfect. Urgent calls to deescalate World leaders made urgent calls to deescalate. The attack on nuclear sites set a 'dangerous precedent,' China's foreign minister said. The region is already on edge as Israel seeks to annihilate Hamas, an Iranian ally, in the Gaza Strip, where the war is still raging after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu brushed off such calls, saying Israel's strikes so far are 'nothing compared to what they will feel under the sway of our forces in the coming days.' Israel, the sole though undeclared nuclear-armed state in the Middle East — said it launched the attack to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. The two countries have been regional adversaries for decades. Iran has always said its nuclear program was peaceful, and the U.S. and others have assessed it has not pursued a weapon since 2003. But it has enriched ever larger stockpiles of uranium to near weapons-grade levels in recent years and was believed to have been able to develop multiple weapons within months if it chose to do so. The UN's atomic watchdog censured Iran last week for not complying with its obligations. Araghchi, Iran's top diplomat, said Israel had targeted an oil refinery near Tehran and another in the country's Bushehr province on the Persian Gulf. He said Iran had also targeted 'economic' sites in Israel, without elaborating. Araghchi was speaking to diplomats in his first public appearance since the initial Israeli strikes. Semiofficial Iranian news agencies reported that an Israeli drone strike had caused a 'strong explosion' at an Iranian natural-gas processing plant. Israel's military did not immediately comment. The extent of damage at the South Pars natural gas field was not immediately clear. Such sites have air defense systems around them, which Israel has been targeting. An oil refinery was also damaged in the northern Israeli city of Haifa, according to the firm operating it. Bazan Group said pipelines and transmission lines between facilities were damaged, forcing some downstream facilities to be shut down. It said no one was wounded. Iran calls nuclear talks 'unjustifiable' The Arab Gulf country of Oman, which has been mediating indirect talks between the U.S. and Iran over Tehran's nuclear program, said a sixth round planned for Sunday would not take place. 'We remain committed to talks and hope the Iranians will come to the table soon,' a senior U.S. official said on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive talks. Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, said Saturday that the nuclear talks were 'unjustifiable' after Israel's strikes, which he said were the 'result of the direct support by Washington.' In a post on his Truth Social account early Sunday, Trump reiterated that the U.S. was not involved in the attacks on Iran and warned that any retaliation directed against it would bring an American response 'at levels never seen before.' 'However, we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!' he wrote. 'More than a few weeks' to repair nuclear facilities In Iran, satellite photos analyzed by AP show extensive damage at Iran's main nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz. The images shot Saturday by Planet Labs PBC show multiple buildings damaged or destroyed. The structures hit include buildings identified by experts as supplying power to the facility. UN nuclear chief Rafael Grossi told the Security Council that the above-ground section of the Natanz facility was destroyed. The main centrifuge facility underground did not appear to have been hit, but the loss of power could have damaged infrastructure there, he said. Israel also struck a nuclear research facility in Isfahan. The International Atomic Energy Agency said four 'critical buildings' were damaged, including its uranium conversion facility. It said there was no sign of increased radiation at Natanz or Isfahan. An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with official procedures, said that according to the army's initial assessment 'it will take much more than a few weeks' for Iran to repair the damage to the Natanz and Isfahan nuclear sites. The official said the army had 'concrete intelligence that production in Isfahan was for military purposes.' Lidman and Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Natalie Melzer in Nahariya, Israel, and Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report. Jon Gambrell, Melanie Lidman And Julia Frankel, The Associated Press
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Tariffs, wildfires and AI on the agenda as Canada hosts world leaders at G7
A Canada flag, left, and an Alberta flag flap in the breeze with Mt. Kidd in the background at the site of the G7 Leaders meeting in Kananaskis, Alta., Monday, June 2, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney has tried to pare down Canada's priorities as the G7 summit host, but there's still a lengthy list of global issues for leaders to discuss over the coming days. 'Leaders (will) meet at a moment of enormous flux globally, when tensions among G7 members are especially pronounced,' Carney's foreign policy adviser David Angell told a panel this week. He did not directly reference U.S. President Donald Trump, who famously walked out of the last G7 summit Canada hosted in 2018. Here's a look at what's on the agenda in Kananaskis, Alta., and what to expect. Economics On the formal agenda, the first discussion is about the 'global economic outlook,' followed by a working lunch on economic security and supply chains. Angell said this will include a discussion on 'anti-market practices by large, non-G7 economies.' China is among those countries accused of anti-market practices. 'There's no doubt that important discussion of President Trump's tariff strategy will take place,' he added. John Kirton, head of the G7 Research Group at the University of Toronto, said the discussion will likely set the tone on how countries balance fiscal stimulus through tax cuts or possibly more defence spending along with cutting back deficits. He said leaders will need to navigate the difficult reality that Trump's tariffs are hurting economic growth and likely caused the downgrading of Washington's credit ratings. Leaders are set to discuss critical minerals, and Kirton said this might involve setting labour and environmental transparency standards for minerals acquired in fragile countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo. Sen. Peter Boehm, who played a central role in many G7 summits, said he expects Canada to raise the dysfunction of the World Trade Organization, though this might happen in an informal setting instead of part of the structured G7 meetings. The WTO's appeal body is the main global enforcer of resolutions in trade disputes, and it has been effectively stalled for years as the U.S. blocks the appointment of panel members, following frustration of how the WTO has ruled against Washington. In 2018, Canada launched the Ottawa Group, a committee urging WTO reform made up of more than a dozen economies ranging from Kenya to Norway, but it has had limited success. Wildfires and foreign interference The second session taking place Monday will involve safety, particularly wildfires, foreign interference and transnational crime. Canada is set to release a Kananaskis Wildfire Charter, spanning mitigation, response and recovery. Kirton said discussion around the document will focus on 'equipment interoperability' to allow G7 members to support each other during emergencies, as well as the use of satellite imagery to fight wildfires. He said the topic has become 'a burning issue' in part because wildfires in places like Los Angeles and across the Prairies show how the threat is relevant to Washington and its G7 peers. Leaders might try to raise climate change, but Kirton doubts that phrase will appear in any closing statements, with Trump pushing back on the topic. A brief circulated among G7 planners from various countries originally included the term 'countering migrant smuggling and drug trafficking' but Kirton noted that the term did not appear in later drafts. Kirton said he expects leaders to discuss tighter co-operation in combating the drug trade, given that the U.S. concern over opioids matches concerns other countries have about heroin trafficking. 'Making the world secure' The topic title of the Monday working dinner is broad. While such a session would normally involve conflicts in Israel and the Palestinian territories, North Korea and Sudan, analysts expect that recent strikes between Israel and Iran will dominate this discussion. Ukrainian sovereignty Tuesday's working breakfast will come after G7 leaders have a chance to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and amid concerns from other G7 members that the U.S. might sign a deal from Russia that only encourages further invasion of European countries. After that, G7 leaders have a larger meeting with the invited guests, which so far includes leaders of Australia, Brazil, India, Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Ukraine, NATO, the United Nations and the World Bank. It's unclear whether Canada's bid to raise issues of foreign interference will come up in talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose government the RCMP has linked to extortion, coercion and homicide cases. In January, the foreign interference inquiry's final report said 'India is the second most active' threat actor, which is 'clandestinely providing illicit financial support to various Canadian politicians in an attempt to secure the election of pro-India candidates or gain influence.' Energy security Tuesday afternoon's discussion is set to include making energy affordable and creating the infrastructure needed to diversify of energy sources. Angell said 'a number of key leaders' visiting the summit as guests will be part of the talks. Carney's office has said Canada is seeking coalitions with reliable partners to open new markets, and generate large infrastructure investments. AI and quantum tech Carney's office says G7 leaders will discuss 'using artificial intelligence and quantum to unleash economic growth,' though it's not clear where in the schedule this will take place. Experts say quantum computing could rapidly speed up processing times and allow for more accurate or efficient tasks. But they say cryptography might be needed to prevent powerful quantum computers from breaking power grids and banking systems. Kirton said the discussion will likely include discussion on how to include developing countries in the gains of AI and how it can boost the efficiency of government bureaucracies and business of all sizes. Something useful — and Canadian While federal officials have warned that the summit will unlikely end with a lengthy communiqué that has been part of almost every other G7 summit, Boehm has faith Canada will still deliver points of consensus that liberal democracies can act on. Last month, finance ministers and central bankers agreed on action around cyber threats to the financial sector and the need to assess the possibilities and risks posed by artificial intelligence. In March, foreign ministers pledged to focus on maritime security, a topic that affects all G7 countries who also happen to share three oceans with Canada, giving grounds to look at everything from unregistered vessels undermining sanctions to illegal fishing and threats to undersea fibre-optic cables. These were largely seen as ways to bridge the growing gap between Europe and the U.S. and focus on shared goals. It's a skill G7 allies turn to Canada for, sometimes literally, in the middle of the night. 'There's often come a time, usually at three in the morning or something, where someone will look at me, or whoever is in the Canadian chair and say … 'it's time for the great Canadian initiative to compromise, and get this thing done.' So we do add value,' Boehm said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 15, 2025. Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press
CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
Carney's task at G7 will be to keep the group alive as experts question the outcome
Vehicles pass a security gate and fence outside the site of the G7 Leaders meeting in Kananaskis, Alta., Monday, June 2, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh OTTAWA — As Prime Minister Mark Carney gets ready to host U.S. President Donald Trump and other leaders at the G7 summit in Alberta, analysts say Canada's most important goal will be to keep the G7 from falling apart — even if that means not issuing a joint statement. 'Keeping this informal international organization together will, I think, be a mark of success,' said Sen. Peter Boehm, a former diplomat who played a central role in Canada's participation in the G7 for decades. 'The challenge I think that we will be seeing at Kananaskis is whether we still have like-mindedness in the G7, and whether that can still project (unity), in terms of dealing with some of the big global challenges.' The G7 includes the United States, France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, Italy and Canada, as well as the European Union. For five decades, the group's members have coordinated how liberal democracies respond to economic and social challenges. The group has set the tone for other industrialized democracies and the United Nations for decades, and in recent years has gone beyond economics to focus on global security. Each G7 nation takes a turn at a rotating presidency of the group; this year is Canada's turn. Carney will welcome leaders to Kananaskis, Alta., on Sunday and the summit runs through Tuesday. The meetings come days after Israel and Iran exchanged missile strikes and after months of Trump disparaging multilateral institutions and implementing tariffs widely seen as damaging to the global economy. Trump has said repeatedly that Russia should rejoin the group it was expelled from after it invaded Ukraine in 2014 — despite Moscow saying it has no interest in doing so. This year's summit was organized hastily. This spring's election and Justin Trudeau's resignation as prime minister caused the bureaucracy to scale back its planning and outreach to other G7 countries. It will be Carney's first major summit, though Boehm notes he took part in G7 and G20 meetings during his former career as a central banker. The summit normally ends with a joint communiqué, a lengthy statement outlining views shared by G7 countries that is negotiated over the course of weeks, and often through the night during the summit. In 2019, however, France issued a chair's statement — a step Boehm said G7 leaders reserve for the worst-case scenario when the leaders are unable to arrive at a consensus. 'What's the point of driving towards consensus when you're not going to get it?' he said, adding he does not expect this year's G7 summit to issue a full communiqué. 'There is always going to be some bumps and hiccups, and one country not seeing it quite the way the others do, but it's a venerable institution.' Federal officials who briefed Canadian media last Thursday hinted that this G7 might not end with a joint statement. 'Canada is adopting a focused approach this year. We have a streamlined number of priorities, ministerial meetings and negotiated outcome documents,' said a senior official who spoke on the condition she not be named. 'We really want to ensure that we continue to focus on actions that we can take together.' Kerry Buck, a former Canadian ambassador, said it might be 'impossible' to reach agreement with the U.S. on things like Russia's invasion of Ukraine, climate change and the need to preserve free trade. 'It's in no one's interest to pick a fight and have open conflict at the table,' Buck told a panel held by the Canadian International Council on June 4. 'A message of disunity coming from the leaders would actually do more damage to the G7 and it's in our interest to preserve it.' Buck said she expects the one-on-one meetings on the sidelines of the summit will lead to fruitful 'quiet diplomacy.' 'I would aim for a thin G7 leaders declaration at best, (and) work to minimize damage to the institution,' she said. Carney arrives Sunday afternoon in Alberta and has a series of bilateral meetings scheduled with G7 leaders and some of the non-G7 guests who he invited. The actual summit kicks off Monday. Boehm said it usually starts with a discussion on the global economy led by the U.S. president. A working lunch could touch on themes like energy security, artificial intelligence and critical minerals. The afternoon is expected to be about security, including Canada's concerns about wildfires and foreign interference. Tuesday is expected to focus on foreign policy and involve at least 10 invited leaders from non-G7 countries or international institutions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy could play a large role, though the recent hostilities between Israel and Iran might also loom large. North Korea is a frequent topic at the G7 table, Boehm said, adding he hopes the discussion also touches on the crisis in international development spurred by the U.S. pulling back from foreign aid. The agenda has lengthy gaps between the sessions — time set aside for leaders to meet their new peers. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz only started his new job last month, just as Carney's post-election ministry was sworn in. Boehm said many leaders will want to meet Trump and the president prefers one-on-one chats to multilateral meetings. This month's talks could also shape ministerial meetings that Canada can host later in the year, particularly on energy and the environment. John Kirton, head of the G7 Research Group at the University of Toronto, notes that two G7 ministerial meetings already hosted by Canada generated much consensus on issues like artificial intelligence in banking and maritime security. Kirton said he is 'predicting a significant performance' even if there is no joint communiqué. 'I'm expecting that there will be probably a short, crisp, compact concluding chair's statement,' he said. He also predicts Canada will release six subject-specific documents summarizing the general position of G7 members. G7 hosts also tend to unveil a major development or humanitarian project — a 'signature initiative' — in a bid to get funding from partner countries. Canada has previously used the G7 to advance education for girls in conflict zones and maternal health in poorer countries, while Italy last year focused on biological threats in Africa. It's not clear if Canada will have the cash to make a major announcement this year. Kirton cited a budget crunch among G7 members, while Boehm said the spring election stopped a lot of outreach Canada would normally do in the months leading up to a summit. Some are anticipating a project pitch that wouldn't involve large sums of money, such as an initiative aimed at countering transnational repression. Given its power, the G7 is a target for advocates on a range of issues who hope to see their priorities reflected in the communiqué. Ottawa has faced calls to speak out against arbitrary detainment, Africa's debt crisis and Pakistan's Kashmir dispute with India. Business and civil society leaders will be holding a series of side events associated with the summit, although many will be far removed from the leaders' summit in Kananaskis. The RCMP said it has set up 'three designated G7 demonstration zones' that will be broadcast to G7 leaders with video and audio, and that the leaders will be far from the protests. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 15, 2025. Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press
