In Winnipeg, supporters hopeful after Canada says it will recognize Palestinian state
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Globe and Mail
40 minutes ago
- Globe and Mail
Canadian ministers to discuss trade in meetings with Mexican president and government officials
Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne and Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand are heading to Mexico City this week to hold bilateral meetings with government officials, just days after both countries failed to reach trade agreements with the U.S. by an Aug. 1 deadline set by President Donald Trump. The senior cabinet ministers are also expected to meet with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, according to two sources familiar with the planning. The Globe and Mail is not identifying the sources because they are not authorized to speak publicly about the discussions. The two days of talks, which will tackle trade and the broader relationship between the countries, begin Tuesday. The discussions are taking place at a time when Mr. Trump's trade actions and rhetoric have raised questions about the future of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement and free trade generally. With never-ending tariff drama, the Canadian economy limps along After intensive talks between Ottawa and Washington did not reach a trade agreement by the deadline, the United States raised the blanket tariffs that Mr. Trump imposed on Canadian goods in March to 35 per cent from 25 per cent. These tariffs do not apply to products that meet the rules of origin outlined in the USMCA, which has allowed most Canadian exports to continue crossing the border tariff-free. Mexico, however, was granted a 90-day extension to continue trade talks, without the U.S. immediately increasing tariffs. The extension was attributed by some to Mexico's quiet diplomacy with the United States. It has stood in contrast with Canada's more combative reaction, which includes some countertariffs. Despite the setback, Canada is continuing to negotiate with the Trump administration to achieve some level of trade certainty. On Sunday, Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for U.S.-Canada trade, told CBS News's Face the Nation that he expects Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mr. Trump to speak 'over the next number of days.' Mr. LeBlanc said there's a great deal of common ground with the U.S., and that he believes a deal to bring down tariffs is still possible. Carney says Ottawa is disappointed with raised 35% U.S. tariffs, remains committed to USMCA Trade talks with U.S. to continue over coming weeks, LeBlanc says He also said the country is encouraged by recent conversations with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, but 'we're not yet where we need to go to get the deal that's in the best interest of the two economies.' On Friday, Mr. LeBlanc told The Globe in an interview from Washington that a new deal in the short term isn't likely. He said he will be speaking to Mr. Lutnick this coming week, and that the two will meet in person later in August. Mr. Carney and Ms. Sheinbaum spoke last month, with the Mexican President saying the two leaders had agreed to strengthen trade collaboration. She said at the time that she had agreed with Mr. Carney that the USMCA, signed during Mr. Trump's first presidency, needed to be respected. Ms. Sheinbaum said they had also discussed strategies for negotiating with the Trump administration. Mr. Carney said in a statement released Friday that Canada remains committed to the USMCA trade pact. Goldy Hyder, the president and CEO of the Business Council of Canada, said in an interview Sunday that the meetings in Mexico City are significant and are likely to be a warm-up act to a later visit by Mr. Carney himself. Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu eyes new markets outside U.S., looks at Southeast Asia and beyond He also said Mexico represents 'low-hanging fruit' for Canada's diversification strategy. Often, businesses think about Europe and Asia as potential new markets, but he said there are many opportunities for the countries to work together for each other's economic security. Canada and Mexico are both democracies that believe in fair trade, he said, adding that deepening those ties sends an important statement. Mexico is identified as a priority market for Export Development Canada, which says the country is considered Canada's third most important trading partner and its top export destination in Latin America. At the end of last year, B.C. announced that it would establish a trade office in Mexico as part of the province's push to diversify trade. Mr. Trump has justified tariffs for Canada and Mexico because he says he wants the countries to do more to address illegal smuggling of the opioid fentanyl. The President has used this argument to impose broad-based levies by declaring a 'national emergency' on the border. New fentanyl data undercut White House's portrayal of Canada's role in U.S. drug crisis Canada has maintained that Mr. Trump's allegations about fentanyl trafficking are false, but it has boosted spending on the border in recent months, and put a fentanyl 'czar' in place, Kevin Brosseau, a former RCMP deputy commissioner. Mr. LeBlanc said Friday that his team continues to stress to Americans steps Canada is already taking to combat fentanyl, and that the amount crossing from Canada to the U.S. is minuscule. 'I'm confident that the fentanyl justification can be worked through with the Americans,' he said. With reports from Steven Chase, Stephanie Levitz, David Agren and Andrea Woo
CBC
41 minutes ago
- CBC
Canadian officials confident U.S. trade deal will be reached
Prime Minister Mark Carney and Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, expressed confidence a new trade deal will be reached with the United States, even after 35 per cent tariffs were imposed late last week.
Globe and Mail
2 hours ago
- Globe and Mail
Hamas says it will allow aid for hostages in Gaza if Israel halts air strikes
Hamas said on Sunday it was prepared to co-ordinate with the Red Cross to deliver aid to hostages it holds in Gaza, if Israel meets certain conditions, after a video it released showing an emaciated captive drew sharp criticism from Western powers. Hamas said any co-ordination with the Red Cross is contingent upon Israel permanently opening humanitarian corridors and halting air strikes during the distribution of aid. According to Israeli officials, 50 hostages now remain in Gaza, only 20 of whom are believed to be alive. Hamas, thus far, has barred humanitarian organizations from having any kind of access to the hostages and families have little or no details of their conditions. On Saturday, Hamas released its second video in two days of Israeli hostage Evyatar David. In it, David, skeletally thin, is shown digging a hole that, he says in the video, is for his own grave. The arm of the individual holding the camera, which can be seen in the frame, is a regular width. The Editorial Board: Israel must stop helping Hamas to win The video of David drew criticism from Western powers and horrified Israelis. France, Germany, the UK and the U.S. were among countries to express outrage and Israel's Foreign Ministry announced that the UN Security Council will hold a special session on Tuesday morning on the issue of the situation of the hostages in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he had asked the Red Cross to give humanitarian assistance to the hostages during a conversation with the head of the Swiss-based ICRC's local delegation. A statement from The Hostages Families Forum, which represents relatives of those being held in Gaza, said Hamas' comments about the hostages cannot hide that it 'has been holding innocent people in impossible conditions for over 660 days,' and demanded their immediate release. 'Until their release,' said the statement, 'Hamas has the obligation to provide them with everything they need. Hamas kidnapped them and they must care for them. Every hostage who dies will be on Hamas's hands.' Six more people died of starvation or malnutrition in Gaza over the past 24 hours, its health ministry said on Sunday as Israel said it allowed a delivery of fuel to the enclave, in the throes of a humanitarian disaster after almost two years of war. The new deaths raised the toll of those dying from what international humanitarian agencies say may be an unfolding famine to 175, including 93 children, since the war began, the ministry said. Egypt's state-affiliated Al Qahera News TV said two trucks carrying 107 tons of diesel were set to enter Gaza, months after Israel severely restricted aid access to the enclave before easing it somewhat as starvation began to spread. COGAT, the Israeli military agency that co-ordinates aid, said later in the day that four tankers of UN fuel had entered to help in operations of hospitals, bakeries, public kitchens and other essential services. There was no immediate confirmation whether the two diesel fuel trucks had entered Gaza from Egypt. Gaza's health ministry has said fuel shortages have severely impaired hospital services, forcing doctors to focus on treating only critically ill or injured patients. Fuel shipments have been rare since March, when Israel restricted the flow of aid into the enclave in what it said was pressure on Hamas militants to free the remaining hostages they took in their October, 2023 attack on Israel. Israel blames Hamas for the suffering in Gaza but, in response to a rising international uproar, it announced steps last week to let more aid reach the population, including pausing fighting for part of the day in some areas, approving air drops and announcing protected routes for aid convoys. UN agencies say airdrops are insufficient and that Israel must let in far more aid by land and open up access to the territory to prevent starvation among its 2.2 million people, most of whom are displaced amidst vast swathes of rubble. COGAT said that during the past week over 23,000 tons of humanitarian aid in 1,200 trucks had entered Gaza but that hundreds of the trucks had yet to be driven to aid distribution hubs by U.N. and other international organizations. Meanwhile, Belgium's air force dropped the first in a series of its aid packages into Gaza on Sunday in a joint operation with Jordan, the Belgian defence ministry said. France on Friday started to air-drop 40 tons of humanitarian aid. Israeli forces kill over 20 Palestinians seeking food in Gaza, health officials say The Hamas-run Gaza government media office said on Sunday that nearly 1,600 aid trucks had arrived since Israel eased restrictions late in July. However, witnesses and Hamas sources said many of those trucks have been looted by desperate displaced people and armed gangs. More than 700 trucks of fuel entered the Gaza Strip in January and February during a ceasefire before Israel broke it in March in a dispute over terms for extending it and resumed its major offensive. Palestinian local health authorities said at least 80 people had been killed by Israeli gunfire and air strikes across the coastal enclave on Sunday. Deaths included persons trying to make their way to aid distribution points in southern and central areas of Gaza, Palestinian medics said. Among those killed was a staff member of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, which said an Israeli strike at its headquarters in Khan Younis in southern Gaza ignited a fire on the first floor of the building. The Gaza war began when Hamas killed more than 1,200 people and took 251 hostage in a cross-border attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, according to Israeli figures. Israel's air and ground war in densely populated Gaza has since killed more than 60,000 Palestinians, according to enclave health officials.
