Trump-Albanese G7 meeting in limbo as relations sour over Israeli sanctions, AUKUS
Highly anticipated plans for Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to hold face-to-face talks with United States President Donald Trump at the Group of Seven (G7) summit are in limbo. Canberra's sanctions on two Israeli Cabinet members and a new US review of a defence pact with Australia and the United Kingdom have cast doubt on whether the crucial meeting would take place. CNA's Roger Maynard reports from Canberra.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Putin speaks to Trump, condemns Israel's strikes on Iran, Kremlin says
FILE PHOTO: Russia's President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump talk during a bilateral meeting at the G20 leaders summit in Osaka, Japan, June 28, 2019. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo MOSCOW - Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to U.S. President Donald Trump for 50 minutes on Saturday, condemning the Israeli military operation against Iran and expressing concern about the risks of escalation, the Kremlin said. "Vladimir Putin condemned Israel's military operation against Iran and expressed serious concern about a possible escalation of the conflict, which would have unpredictable consequences for the entire situation in the Middle East," Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters. Trump, for his part, described events in the Middle East as "very alarming," according to Ushakov. But the two leaders said they do not rule out a return to the negotiating track on Iran's nuclear programme, Ushakov said. On Ukraine, Putin told the U.S. leader that Russia was ready to continue negotiations with the Ukrainians after June 22, according to state news agency RIA. Trump reiterated his interest in a speedy resolution to the conflict, the Kremlin aide said. Putin also congratulated Trump on his 79th birthday. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
3 hours ago
- Straits Times
Ukraine warns against drop in aid due to Israel-Iran escalation
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky noted that there was a slowdown in US aid to Ukraine during previous military action in the Middle East. PHOTO: REUTERS Ukraine warns against drop in aid due to Israel-Iran escalation KYIV - Ukraine said on June 14 it hoped the military escalation between Israel and Iran would not lead to a drop in aid to Kyiv, at a time when European support is stalling without US engagement. Israel unleashed large-scale attacks on Iran on June 13, targeting nuclear and military facilities, high-ranking generals and atomic scientists. Iran, in turn , launched barrages of drones and missiles at Israel. The escalation sparked international calls for restraint as fears of broader conflict grow. In Kyiv it also sparked anxiety about future supplies of military aid, fearing Washington might relocate more resources to beef up the defence of its close ally Israel. 'We would like to see aid to Ukraine not decrease because of this,' President Volodymyr Zelensky said. 'Last time, this was a factor that slowed down aid to Ukraine.' The Ukrainian leader warned that Europe's support was already stalling without Washington's engagement. 'Europe has not yet decided for itself what it will do with Ukraine if America is not there,' he said. The return to the White House of US President Donald Trump has upended the West's provision of aid to Kyiv. It has left Europe scrambling to work out how it can fill any gap in supplies if Mr Trump decides to pull US military, financial and intelligence support. Mr Zelensky urged the United States to 'shift tone' in its dialogue with Russia, saying it was 'too warm' and would not help to end the war. Mr Trump has sought rapprochement with Moscow and held three phone calls with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin so far this year. He has stunned Nato allies with the stark change in policy from that of the previous US administration, which aborted almost all contacts with Moscow after Russia invaded Ukraine. The Israeli attacks on Iran also drove oil prices up, which Mr Zelensky said would benefit Russia. 'The attacks led to a sharp rise in oil prices. This is bad for us,' he added, reiterating a call for the West to introduce price caps on Russian oil exports. The Ukrainian leader said he hoped to raise the issue of price caps at a possible meeting with Mr Trump in the near future. He added, however, that the Israeli strikes might prove favourable for Kyiv if they lead to a drop in Iranian supplies of military equipment to Russia, which has relied heavily on Iranian-made attack drones. More soldiers return home Ukraine and Russia exchanged prisoners on June 14, the fourth such swap this week, under agreements clinched in Istanbul earlier in June. Kyiv also said it had stopped Russian advances in the north-eastern Sumy region. The deals to hand over killed soldiers and exchange captured ones are the only agreements to have come out of two rounds of peace talks in Istanbul. Russia has rejected calls to halt its three-year invasion. It has demanded Ukraine cede even more territory and renounce Western military support if it wants peace. Since Russia invaded in February 2022, the war has forced millions of people to flee their homes as towns and cities across eastern Ukraine have been flattened by heavy bombardments. Ukrainians show portraits of their missing relatives to released prisoners of war, in the hope that someone saw them in captivity. PHOTO: EPA-EFE As part of the Istanbul agreements, Kyiv also said it had received another 1,200 unidentified bodies from Russia. It said Moscow had said they were those of 'Ukrainian citizens, including military personnel.' Ukraine did not say whether it returned any bodies to Russia. Meanwhile, Russia intensified its offensive along the front line, especially in the northeastern Sumy region, where it seeks to establish a 'buffer zone'. This zone is designed, ostensibly, to protect the Russian border region of Kursk, previously partly occupied by Ukraine. Mr Zelensky said Russia's advance on Sumy was stopped and that Kyiv's forces had managed to retake one village. He said 53,000 men Russian soldiers were involved in the Sumy operation. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
8 hours ago
- Straits Times
Canada's Sikhs voice outrage over Modi G7 invitation
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends the ceremonial recption of Angola's President Joao Manuel Goncalves Lourenco at the Rashtrapati Bhavan presidential palace in New Delhi, India, May 3, 2025. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo TORONTO - Members of Canada's Sikh community who were warned by police that their lives were at risk and allege the Indian government is responsible for the threat are incensed by Ottawa's invitation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the G7 summit in Alberta. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney invited Modi, although India is not a G7 member, to attend the summit that starts on Sunday as a guest. It will be Modi's first visit to Canada in a decade and a diplomatic test for Carney, a political neophyte. Canada's relationship with India has been tense since former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in 2023 accused India's government of involvement in the June 18, 2023, murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Sikh separatist leader in Canada. Modi's government has denied involvement in Nijjar's killing and has accused Canada of providing a safe haven for Sikh separatists. "'Outrage' is the kind of term that I've heard from people," Sikh activist Moninder Singh, a friend of Nijjar, said of the invitation. He and other Sikh leaders plan to hold a protest in Ottawa on Saturday. Carney, locked in a trade war with the United States, is trying to shore up alliances elsewhere and diversify Canada's exports. Carney told reporters he invited India due to its importance in global supply chains. India's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a Thursday press briefing that a meeting between Modi and Carney "will offer an important opportunity for them to exchange views on bilateral and global issues and explore pathways to set or reset the relationship." SIKHS FACE THREATS That rationale rings hollow for Singh, who lives in British Columbia. He has received multiple warnings from police that his life was at risk. One such warning forced him from his home for months in 2023 for his children's safety. "On a personal level, and on a community level, as well, it was deeply insulting ... Sikh lives aren't as important as the fifth-largest economy in the world that needs to be at the table," he said. A spokesperson for Carney did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police said in October they had communicated more than a dozen threats to people like Singh who are advocating for the creation of a Sikh homeland carved out of India. In October, under Trudeau, Canada expelled six Indian diplomats, linking them to Nijjar's murder and alleging a broader government effort to target Indian dissidents in Canada through killings, extortion, use of organized crime and clandestine information-gathering. India retaliated by ordering the expulsion of six Canadian diplomats and called the allegations preposterous and politically motivated. Canada has said it does not have evidence linking Modi to the threats. The tension has thrust Canada's Sikh community - the largest outside India's Sikh-majority Punjab state - into the spotlight. Singh said there should have been conditions on Modi's invitation. "Any meetings with them should have been under the conditions that Mr. Modi and his government would take responsibility for what has been uncovered and cooperate, but none of that happened." Carney told reporters Modi had agreed to "law enforcement dialogue." Jaiswal said Indian and Canadian law enforcement agencies will continue to cooperate in some ways. Some activists and politicians in Canada have accused Carney of putting economic issues ahead of human rights concerns. But Sanjay Ruparelia, a Toronto Metropolitan University politics professor, said the prime minister is simply being practical. "(Carney's) watchword since he's come to office is pragmatism. And this is very much a pragmatic, realpolitik decision." REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
