Latest news with #ethnicconflict
National Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- National Post
Joel Kotkin: The West's immigration reckoning is here
The recent riots in Los Angeles, sparked by President Trump's crackdown on undocumented immigrants, could be a harbinger to a new era of ethnic conflict not only in the U.S. but throughout the West, including Canada. Article content Many leading countries for immigrants, notably in the Middle East, may have higher percentages of international migrants, but many are only there temporarily. But in Canada, Australia, and the U.S. — where the foreign born represent between 15 and 30 per cent of the total population — most come to stay, with sometimes problematic results. Article content Article content Article content President Joe Biden changed immigration policies, allowing millions, some barely vetted, to enter at ever increasing rates, causing the number of undocumented immigrants to soar past 11 million. Until recently, former Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau followed a similar liberalization that allowed large numbers of migrants, some coming as refugees, into the country Article content Article content In both countries, the mass migration has deepened already serious class divides as many new migrants remain poor. In Canada, one in five recent immigrants now lives in poverty, with most suffering from 'deep poverty' — an income below 75 per cent of the poverty line — compared to only five per cent of the whole population. Article content Such complexities are rarely part of the public discussion of immigration. In the U.S. legacy media spin on the crackdown focuses on the abuses and often ham handed approach used by the Trump administration in working class Latino communities. Stories of individual cases of respectable and upright families targeted by the crackdown predominate, stirring up ever more fear of a racist, even 'fascist' crackdown on minorities. Article content Article content In contrast, the MAGA view focuses on criminal migrants and radical demonstrators, some of whom have engaged in violence. The images of young protesters waving Mexican flags is offensive to many American citizens, even in California. For MAGA, the crackdown represents both a return to legality as well as a defence from hostile elements. Article content Article content Both views largely ignore a more complex, and often contradictory reality. Historically, as immigrant advocates rightly claim, the migration of peoples have been critical to the economic health, and cultural dynamism, of countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and France. Article content Guest workers, for example, played a critical role in the revival of Europe's economies, and steady immigration sparked growth in Canada, the U.S. and Australia. Yet as immigration levels have soared, the economic payoffs seem to be increasingly dubious, particularly when we put into account the changing structure of the labour market.
Russia Today
3 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Russia names its priority in relations with Azerbaijan amid rift
Maintaining friendly bilateral relations is important for both Russia and Azerbaijan, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has insisted, commenting on the current flare-up between Moscow and Baku. On Tuesday, a court in Baku ordered the four-month pre-trial detention of two Russian journalists who hold senior positions in Sputnik Azerbaijan news agency. The country's authorities claim the outlet has been operating 'through illegal financing,' with Sputnik dismissing the allegations as 'absurd.' Moscow has accused Baku of 'hostile actions and unlawful detention of Russian journalists.' The arrests followed a police raid last week on an alleged ethnic organized crime group in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg, composed of Russian nationals of Azerbaijani origin. Two elderly suspects died during the operation, with the preliminary assessment indicating that at least one of them suffered heart failure. The incident sparked outrage among Azerbaijani politicians, who accused Moscow of targeting people based on ethnicity. Speaking to Sputnik Radio on Wednesday, Zakharova said that the reaction to the rift in both Russia and Azerbaijan is 'acute' because the two countries have been 'building such relations… for many years, which are based on taking mutual interests into account and respect.' According to the spokeswoman, the ties between the peoples of the countries, which used to be part of the Soviet Union, are also very close. 'There are families and history, there is… mutual enrichment of cultures, and there are business connections in different areas,' she explained. 'For the two peoples, friendly relations are of paramount importance. And those who are looking to spoil them should think carefully about what they are doing,' Zakharova said without elaborating. There are those who want 'to simply make money' by creating tensions between Moscow and Baku, she added, warning that they may well end up 'getting burned.' The spokeswoman also said that it was 'extremely important' that the Russian Investigative Committee immediately ordered a probe into the deaths of suspects during the police raid in Yekaterinburg. The authorities in Baku should 'take this into account,' she insisted.
Washington Post
5 days ago
- Politics
- Washington Post
A Russian media outlet is raided in Azerbaijan's capital as tensions rise between Moscow and Baku
BAKU, Azerbaijan — Police in Azerbaijan's capital of Baku searched the offices of Russia's state-funded news outlet Sputnik on Monday, local media reported, as tensions rose between the two countries after the deaths of two ethnic Azerbaijanis during a police raid last week in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg. Azerbaijan's Ministry of Internal Affairs said it was investigating claims that Sputnik Azerbaijan was continuing its work despite having its license revoked in February 2025, media outlets said. Russian diplomatic representatives in Baku went to the Sputnik offices to investigate, said Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of broadcaster RT as well as editor of the state-funded media group Rossiya Segodnya, which operates Sputnik. 'We are unable to reach our Azerbaijan bureau staff by phone after local media announced a 'special security operation' against our staff, which includes Russian citizens,' Simonyan posted on X. 'Representatives from our embassy are attempting to gain access.' The search followed official protests from Baku after Russian police raided the homes of ethnic Azerbaijanis in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg on Friday. Two brothers, Ziyaddin and Huseyn Safarov, were killed, and several others were seriously injured during the raids, officials said, with nine people detained. Sayfaddin Huseynli, a brother of the two dead Azerbaijanis, told The Associated Press the raids were 'an inhumane, cruel act by Russia against migrants — an act of intimidation.' One of the dead was a Russian citizen and the other held both Russian and Azerbaijani citizenship, Huseynli said. Their bodies were being returned to Azerbaijan on Monday. He earlier told Azerbaijani public broadcaster ITV that the men were beaten and subjected to electric shocks 'without any trial or investigation.' 'The so-called Russian law enforcement agencies broke into houses in the middle of the night, beat and took people away like animals,' he told the broadcaster. Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry said it expected 'that the matter will be investigated and all perpetrators of violence brought to justice as soon as possible.' Russia's Investigative Committee said Monday that one of the deaths was from heart failure. It did not provide details on the second victim, but said a medical examination would be conducted to determine the exact cause of death for both men. It also said the raids were part of an investigation into several murders spanning more than two decades. Officials in Baku responded by canceling a scheduled trip to Moscow by Azerbaijani officials, citing the 'targeted extrajudicial killings and violence against Azerbaijanis on the basis of their nationality' by Russian law enforcement. It also canceled a planned visit to Baku by a Russian deputy prime minister, and the Culture Ministry called off concerts, exhibitions, festivals and performances by Russian state and private institutions. Moscow has maintained a muted response to Azerbaijan's actions. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday he 'sincerely regretted' Baku's decision to cancel the events. He also said Moscow would continue to 'explain the reason and nature' of the Yekaterinburg raids. 'Everything that took place is related to the work of law enforcement agencies, and that cannot and should not be a reason for such a reaction. We are interested in further developing our good relations with Azerbaijan,' he said. Ties between Moscow and Baku have been strained for months. On Dec. 25, 2024, an Azerbaijani passenger jet was hit by fire from the ground as it approached Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, Azerbaijani officials said. It diverted to nearby Kazakhstan, where it crashed while attempting to land, killing 38 of 67 people aboard. Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev said it was shot down over Russia, albeit unintentionally, and rendered uncontrollable by electronic warfare measures amid allegations that Russian air defense systems were trying to fend off a Ukrainian drone strike near Grozny. Aliyev accused Russia of trying to 'hush up' what happened for several days. Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to Aliyev for what he called a 'tragic incident' but stopped short of acknowledging responsibility. In May, Aliyev declined to attend Russia's Victory Day parade in Moscow. Later that month, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha visited Azerbaijan, signaling closer ties between Baku and Kyiv.
