South Korea ratifies treaty aimed at safeguarding international adoptions
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — After years of delay, South Korea has ratified the Hague Adoption Convention, an international treaty meant to safeguard international adoptions, marking a significant policy shift decades after sending tens of thousands of children to the West through an aggressive but poorly regulated adoption system.
The government's announcement Tuesday came as it faces growing pressure to address widespread fraud and abuse that plagued its adoption program, particularly during a heyday in the 1970s and 1980s when the country allowed thousands of children to be adopted every year.
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Winnipeg Free Press
28 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
A jab from 33,000 feet cools Trump–Macron ties, but is it just a passing frost?
PARIS (AP) — What began with a handshake evolved into turbulence at 33,000 feet as one of diplomacy's oddest relationships took another strange turn. The political chemistry that once defined the Trump–Macron dynamic — immortalized by a famously tense 29-second handshake in 2017 — was nowhere to be seen in midair Tuesday when U.S. President Donald Trump blasted his French counterpart on social media. As Trump departed the G7 summit early, French President Emmanuel Macron tried to reframe the exit as strategic. 'There is indeed an offer to meet and exchange,' Macron told reporters, suggesting the U.S. might help broker a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. But aboard Air Force One, Trump responded with a swipe that accused Macron of showboating. 'Wrong! He is 'publicity seeking' and always gets it wrong,' Trump said. 'He has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington… Much bigger than that. Stay tuned!' The takedown punctured Macron's narrative and revealed a rupture in a relationship that has featured theater, flattery and touch. Macron, who once styled himself as a 'Trump whisperer,' has long used charm and proximity to try to manage the unpredictable U.S. leader, often contrasting himself with more openly critical peers like Germany's Angela Merkel. But those efforts are far from foolproof. The Élysée Palace made no formal comment on Trump's outburst. Their diplomatic style has never been purely transactional — and has often been tactile. From their earliest encounters, physical gestures have been part of the pageantry: Trump's firm pats and arm-yanks, Macron's theatrical poise and instinctive touches. The roots of their rapport run deep. In 2017, Macron dazzled Trump with a Bastille Day parade, formal dinners and white-knuckle handshakes. A viral 29-second grip — knuckles white, jaws clenched — set the tone for a relationship of theatrical dominance. The physical choreography evolved over the years: Trump yanking Macron's arm at the Élysée, Macron placing a steadying hand on Trump's thigh in Washington. Their February 2025 White House meeting brought a refined version of the dance as Macron delivered corrections with charm, countering Trump's Ukraine comments while laughing at Fort Knox jokes. Signals of strain before the summit Trump joked about Macron's marriage last month after a video of Brigitte Macron playfully pushing her husband surfaced. 'Make sure the door remains closed,' he quipped, before adding: 'They're fine.' But the chill had already begun to set in. This month, Macron traveled to Greenland — a territory Trump has floated buying — to express solidarity with Danish sovereignty. 'This is not what is done between allies,' he said, in what many interpreted as a veiled swipe at the U.S. The G7 summit, intended to project Western unity on Russia and Iran, instead showcased fracture. Trump skipped the final sessions, refused to back new Russia sanctions, and warned Tehran to 'immediately evacuate.' Macron tried to frame the early exit as useful. Trump's one-line rebuttal shut that down. But later in the flight, Trump softened his tone. When reporters asked about the outburst, he replied: 'That was Emmanuel — nice guy but he doesn't get it right too often.' The pivot was familiar. 'It's difficult to be confident about any clear arc in President Trump's reactions to people or events,' said Dana Allin, U.S. policy expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. 'He tends to be disinhibited — he says what's on his mind, and that can change quickly.' There was no handshake this time. No shoulder clap. Just a flick of the thumb — and a public slap across the alliance. The dynamic, Allin suggests, reflects a shift in how Europe engages with Washington. In Trump's first term, many European leaders treated his behavior as a storm they could wait out. 'Now it seems like a more permanent thing,' Allin said.
Toronto Star
42 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
Trump says the US knows where Iran's Khamenei is hiding and urges Iran's unconditional surrender
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday the U.S. knows where Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is hiding during the Israel-Iran conflict but doesn't want him killed 'for now.' Trump urged, in a social media posting, Iran's 'UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER' as the five-day conflict continues to escalate. 'We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding,' Trump added. 'He is an easy target, but is safe there - We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don't want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin.' ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Trump's increasingly muscular comments toward the Iranian government come after he urged Tehran's 9.5 million residents to flee for their lives as he cut short his visit to an international summit to return to Washington for urgent talks with his national security team. The comments about Khamenei and calls for surrender came shortly after Trump in a separate posting touted complete control of the skies over Tehran. Trump returned the White House from his abbreviated visit to the Group of Seven summit in the Canadian Rockies early Tuesday at a moment of choosing in his presidency. Israel, with five days of missile strikes, has done considerable damage to Iran and believes it can now deal a permanent blow to Tehran's nuclear program — particularly if it gets a little more help from the Republican president. But deepening American involvement, perhaps by providing the Israelis with bunker-busting bombs to penetrate Iranian nuclear sites built deep underground or offering other direct U.S. military support, comes with enormous political risk for Trump. Trump, as he made his way back to Washington, expressed frustration with Iranian leaders for failing to reach an agreement. He said he was now looking for 'a real end' to the conflict and a 'complete give-up' of Tehran's nuclear program. 'They should have done the deal. I told them, 'Do the deal,'' Trump told reporters on Air Force One. 'So I don't know. I'm not too much in the mood to negotiate.' ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Iran has insisted that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only, and U.S. intelligence agencies have assessed that Tehran is not actively pursuing a bomb. Trump, who planned to meet with advisers in the Situation Room, appears to be gradually building the public case for a more direct American role in the conflict. His shift in tone comes as the U.S. has repositioned warships and military aircraft in the region to respond if the conflict between Israel and Iran further escalates. Trump made an early departure from G7 The White House announced Monday, while Trump was at the Group of Seven summit in the Canadian Rockies, that he would cut his trip short. 'Simply stated, IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON,' he wrote on social media. 'I said it over and over again! Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!' Asked about his evacuation comment aboard Air Force One, Trump told reporters: 'I just want people to be safe.' 'We're looking at better than a ceasefire. We're not looking for a ceasefire,' Trump said. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Trump said he wasn't ruling out a diplomatic option and he could send Vice President JD Vance and special envoy Steve Witkoff to meet with the Iranians. He also dismissed congressional testimony from National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard, who told lawmakers in March that U.S. spy agencies did not believe Iran was building a nuclear weapon. 'I don't care what she said,' Trump said. 'I think they were very close to having it.' Speculation grows that Trump may be tilting toward more direct involvement The Israelis say their offensive has eviscerated Iran's air defenses and they can now strike targets across the country at will. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the Israeli bombardment will continue until Iran's nuclear program and ballistic missiles are destroyed. So far, Israel has targeted multiple Iranian nuclear program sites but has not been able to destroy Iran's Fordo uranium enrichment facility. The site is buried deep underground — and to eliminate it, Israel may need the 30,000-pound GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator, which uses its weight and sheer kinetic force to reach deeply buried targets and then explode. But Israel does not have the munition or the bomber needed to deliver it — the penetrator is currently delivered by the B-2 stealth bomber. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Israel's own defenses remain largely intact in the face of Iran's retaliatory strikes, but some of Tehran's missiles are getting through and having deadly impact. The White House dispatched Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for a prime-time TV appearance as speculation grows about whether Trump could be tilting toward more direct U.S. involvement. Hegseth told Fox News Channel that 'of course' Trump wanted to see a deal made to curb Iran's nuclear program. 'His position has not changed,' Hegseth said. 'What you're watching in real time is peace through strength and America first. Our job is to be strong. We are postured defensively in the region to be strong in pursuit of a peace deal. And we certainly hope that's what happens here.' Trump continues to push Iran to negotiate on its nuclear program Trump, meanwhile, during an exchange with reporters on the sidelines of the G7, declined to say what it would take for the U.S. to get more directly involved. Instead, he continued to press Iran on negotiations over its nuclear program. 'They should talk, and they should talk immediately,' Trump said during a bilateral meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. He added, 'I'd say Iran is not winning this war.' To be certain, Trump in the days-old conflict has sought to restrain Netanyahu. He rejected a plan presented by Israel to the U.S. to kill Khamenei, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter, who was not authorized to comment on the sensitive matter and spoke on the condition of anonymity. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW The Israelis had informed the Trump administration in recent days that they had developed a credible plan to kill Khamenei. A widening schism over Iran among Trump's MAGA supporters Trump bristled when asked about some of his MAGA faithful, including conservative pundit Tucker Carlson, who have suggested that further U.S. involvement would be a betrayal to supporters who were drawn to his promise to end U.S. involvement in expensive and endless wars. 'Somebody please explain to kooky Tucker Carlson that,' IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON!'' the president wrote on social media. Other prominent Trump supporters have also raised concerns about how far the president should go in backing Israel. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk are among prominent Trump World allies who have noted that voters backed Trump because he promised not to entangle the nation in foreign clashes and to be wary of expanding U.S. involvement in the Mideast conflict. He ran on a promise to quickly end the wars in Gaza and Ukraine but has struggled to find an endgame to either. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW But there are also Trump backers, including Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who are making the case that this is Trump's moment to deliver a decisive blow to Iran. Graham is calling for Trump to 'go all-in' in backing Israel and destroying Iran's nuclear program. ___ Associated Press writers Josh Boak, Tara Copp, Darlene Superville and Will Weissert contributed to this report.
Toronto Star
an hour ago
- Toronto Star
Trump says US knows where Iran's Khamenei is hiding, urges Iran's unconditional surrender
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday the U.S. knows where Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is hiding during the Israel-Iran conflict but doesn't want him killed 'for now.'
