VANCOUVER, British Columbia: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday said President Donald Trump’s talk of making Canada the 51st US state is “a real thing” and is linked to the country’s rich natural resources, local media reported.
Trudeau’s comments to business and labor leaders in a closed-door session were mistakenly carried by a loudspeaker, Canada’s public broadcaster CBC reported.
“Mr. Trump has it in mind that the easiest way to do it is absorbing our country and it is a real thing. In my conversations with him on…,” Trudeau said of making Canada a US state before the microphone cut out, according to CBC.
“They’re very aware of our resources, of what we have and they very much want to be able to benefit from those,” Trudeau reportedly said.
Trudeau’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In a post on social platform X, Gil McGowan, president of the Alberta Federation of Labor, confirmed what Trudeau said.
“Yes, I can confirm that Trudeau said his assessment is that what Trump really wants is not action on fentanyl or immigration or even the trade deficit, what he really wants is to either dominate Canada or take it outright,” McGown wrote.
Trump has repeatedly suggested Canada would be better off if it agreed to become the 51st US state.
In public comments Friday, Trudeau said Canada must think “tactically and strategically” on how to deal with Trump’s threats to impose hefty tariffs on all Canadian imports.
Speaking in Toronto at the opening of a one-day summit on the Canada-US economic relationship, Trudeau said the country must work with the US to avoid tariffs, adding that Canada needs to eliminate internal trade barriers and expand its trade with other nations.
“This is a moment,” said Trudeau. “This is a time in our country’s history that really matters.”
Trump on Monday agreed to a 30-day pause on threats to impose 25 percent tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, with another 10 percent tariff on Canadian oil, natural gas and electricity.
Trump had threatened the tariffs to ensure greater cooperation from the countries to stop illegal immigration and prevent fentanyl smuggling, but he has also pledged to use tariffs to boost domestic manufacturing and raise revenues for the federal government.
Trudeau said Canada can use the 30-day extension to show US officials the country’s increased spending on border security. Canada has announced a $1.3 billion Canadian dollars ($900 million) border security plan that includes drones, helicopters, more border guards and the creation of a joint task force.
Trudeau also has promised to appoint a new fentanyl czar, who will serve as the primary liaison between the Canadian and US governments, even though less than 1 percent of the fentanyl and illegal immigrant crossings into the US come from Canada.
“We need to be very deliberate about how we continue to engage closely with the United States to make the case that Canada is responsible for a tiny part of the North American fentanyl problem, but that we are also bitterly touched by this tragedy,” Trudeau said.
He added that Canada needs to be prepared if Trump decides to go ahead with the tariffs after 30 days.
“We need to be ready to respond robustly,” he said. “We also have to be ready to support Canadians through the responses we’re giving and through a difficult time of tariffs.”
Canada had planned to retaliate to the US action with 25 percent tariffs on $155 billion Canadian dollars ($109 billion) worth of American goods.
Trudeau said it’s also time to have “genuine free trade in Canada,” while strengthening its trade relationships with other countries.
Candace Laing, president and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, said she is happy the meeting is focused on internal trade, trade diversification and responding to US tariffs.
“It’s clear that we can’t just tinker around the edges with incremental steps right now,” she said. “We’ve got to be bold so that businesses and communities can pivot to be more resilient and less reliant on what happens in the US,” Laing said in a statement.
Justin Trudeau reportedly says Trump’s talk of making Canada a US state is ‘a real thing’
https://arab.news/yr9cn
Justin Trudeau reportedly says Trump’s talk of making Canada a US state is ‘a real thing’
Vatican closes the Sistine Chapel to the public and prepares for a papal conclave
- The date for the conclave has not yet been set but it can only begin after a nine-day period of mourning
- For inspiration they will also have the great beauty of the frescos painted by Michelangelo and other renowned Renaissance artists
The Vatican has closed the Sistine Chapel, where cardinals will gather for the conclave to elect the next pope after the death of Pope Francis on April 21 at age 88.
Francis was buried Saturday after a funeral in St. Peter’s Square that gathered world leaders and hundreds of thousands of others, and a nine-day period of mourning is continuing before the conclave can start.
But the church is at the same time turning its attention to the next steps.
Key is preparing the Sistine Chapel for the red-robed cardinals who will gather at the Vatican in the heart of Rome to choose the next pope in an ancient process fictionalized in the 2024 film “Conclave.”
One key task: installing the chimney where ballots will be burned after votes.
Those visitors who managed to enter on Sunday considered themselves lucky, since there is no telling how long the conclave will last, and how long the gem of the Vatican Museums will remain off-limits.
“I think we felt very lucky to be able to be the last group of visitors to come in today,” said Sumon Khan, a tourist from the United States. “You know, our trip would not have been complete without seeing this beautiful place.”
According to a schedule determined by church law, the conclave can only begin after the nine-day mourning period. It is expected to start between May 5 and May 10.
When it does, the cardinals will enter solemnly to participate in a secretive process said to be guided by the holy spirit that will result in the selection of the next leader of the 1.4 billion-strong Catholic church. The choice will determine whether the next pontiff will continue Francis’ reforms, with his focus on the poor and marginalized and the environment, or whether they will choose a pontiff closer in style to conservative predecessors like Benedict XVI focused on doctrine.
For inspiration the cardinals will also have the great beauty of the frescos painted by Michelangelo and other renowned Renaissance artists. The most recognizable is Michelangelo’s Creation of Adam, showing God’s outstretched hand imparting the divine spark of life to the first man.
The chapel is named after Pope Sixtus IV, an art patron who oversaw the construction of the main papal chapel in the 15th century. But it was a later pontiff, Pope Julius II, who commissioned the works by Michelangelo, who painted the ceiling depicting scenes from Genesis from 1508 and 1512 and later returned to paint the Last Judgment on one of the walls.
When the conclave opens, cardinals will chant the Litany of Saints, the solemn, mystical Gregorian chant imploring the intercession of the saints, as they file into the chapel and take an oath of secrecy. The chapel’s thick double doors will close and the master of liturgy will utter the Latin words “Extra omnes,” meaning “everyone out.”
The secretive process is part of a traditioned aimed at preserving the vote from external interference.
The world will then wait for a sign that that a successor to Francis has been chosen. Black smoke coming from the chimney in the Sistine Chapel will indicate that they haven’t achieved the two-thirds majority for a new pope.
But when a pope is finally chosen, white smoke will rise and bells will toll.
Lost to history: Myanmar heritage falls victim to quake
- When a massive earthquake hit Myanmar last month, centuries of sacred history tumbled down
MANDALAY: When a massive earthquake hit Myanmar last month, centuries of sacred history tumbled down -- towering Buddha idols, sky-scraping stupas and the pure-white pagoda where 83-year-old Khin Sein has prayed for most of her life.
The magnitude-7.7 tremor razed Nagayon Pagoda in the central city of Mandalay, Myanmar's last royal capital where ancient heritage was decimated in the disaster which claimed more than 3,700 lives.
For around 200 years, the temple was adorned with a carving of a sacred serpent said to have shielded the Buddha from the elements after his enlightenment.
The quake that struck one month ago on Monday reduced it to a heap of shapeless masonry, half burying the snake's bowing head.
"I cried out to pray that Nagayon Pagoda would save me when the quake started," said Khin Sein. "But my son told me that the pagoda was already gone."
"I don't think any bricklayer or architect could rebuild it the same as it once was," she told AFP, her eyes welling with tears as she paced the perimeter of the temple where she had prayed for 51 years.
"I want the original back but I know it's not possible."
The March 28 quake has left more than 60,000 people living in tent encampments, according to the United Nations, and pushed two million people into "critical need" in a country already devastated by civil war since a 2021 coup.
As the ground sheared up to six metres (20 feet), more than 3,000 monasteries and nunneries were destroyed alongside more than 5,000 pagodas, the ruling junta says.
Myanmar's second city of Mandalay and the adjacent cities of Sagaing and Inwa, dotted around the quake's epicentre, are all ancient seats of power, steeped in history and now pockmarked with ruins.
Cultural capital Mandalay was where the British captured the country's last king in 1885, beginning colonial rule of the whole nation.
The Royal Palace's crenellations have crumbled in places with ornate bastions collapsed askew.
A one-kilometre colonial-era bridge has collapsed into the Irrawaddy River towards Sagaing, where the horizon was once prickled with pinnacles of pagodas and stupas now contorted or simply gone.
Inwa served as capital for nearly 360 years until it was abandoned after a magnitude-8.2 quake struck in 1839.
Three quarters of the historic buildings inside its ancient cultural heritage zone were damaged in this year's jolt, officials say.
Thu Nanda has come to visit what remains of Me Nu Brick Monastery.
Built in 1818, entire portions of its gleaming north and west wings have been devastated, its gold filigree exterior cracked with terracotta-colour innards spilling out.
"The old things are the most valuable," said Thu Nanda, a 49-year-old monk. "The loss of historic heritage is breaking our hearts."
"Even if we are able to repair it, people will not be able to feel it in its original form. Old is just old. It cannot be restored," he said.
"I think the loss of our heritage affects not only our country but also the world."
Myanmar is still grappling with the recovery of human remains from the ruins and the oncoming summer monsoon season. Heavy rains are already forecast this week as thousands mark one month camped outside.
While surveyors have investigated damage to historic buildings, reconstruction efforts are focused on aiding the living victims with little thought yet for the restoration of heritage landmarks.
Myanmar has seen more than its fair share of destruction. The four-year war has made air strikes and sieges of urban centres commonplace.
Thousands have been killed, 3.5 million are displaced and half the population now live in poverty.
Nonetheless Thein Myint Ko, surveying the three-centuries-old Lawka Tharaphu Pagoda, says: "I have never experienced such tragedy in my 65 years alive".
He serves on the board of trustees of a building largely ruined by the force of the quake.
Its gold stupa was cracked like eggshells, and now volunteer workers from a nearby village spade at the dusty remnants beneath.
"I feel devastated," said Thein Myint Ko.
But what was left unscathed has become more precious to the annals of Myanmar.
Somehow a monumental eight-metre marble statue of the Buddha is largely undamaged -- its gold halo shattered and a crack at its base, but its serene expression unperturbed.
"No one was injured and the Buddha image survived," said one man clearing rubble at the feet of the statue. "It is such a blessed pagoda."
lmg-jts/pdw/sco
Trial begins in Paris over 2016 gunpoint robbery of Kim Kardashian
- Ten suspects go on trial in Paris on Monday over the 2016 robbery of the US celebrity Kim Kardashian, which saw some $10 million worth of jewelry stolen from the reality TV star and influencer
PARIS: Ten suspects go on trial in Paris on Monday over the 2016 robbery of the US celebrity Kim Kardashian, which saw some $10 million worth of jewelry stolen from the reality TV star and influencer.
Kardashian, now 44 — who left Paris traumatized hours after the robbery on the night of October 2-3, 2016 — is due to testify at the trial on May 13 in a court appearance that will be a major event in itself.
Those on trial are mainly men in their 60s and 70s with previous criminal records and underworld nicknames like “Old Omar” and “Blue Eyes” that recall the old-school French bandits of 1960s and 1970s film noirs.
Kardashian, then 35, was threatened with a gun to the head and tied up with her mouth taped up. The theft was the biggest against a private individual in France in the past 20 years.
The trial will also go into how the perpetrators received the information as to where Kardashian was staying during Paris Fashion Week, and picked the very moment when her bodyguard was absent, accompanying her sister Kourtney to a night club.
It is thought Kardashian’s frequent posts about her wealth, personal life and whereabouts may have facilitated the perpetrators’ actions. The trial gets under way from 1230 GMT.
The star was staying at an exclusive hotel in central Paris favored by celebrities when two armed and masked men stormed into her room at around 3:00 am after arriving at the establishment by bicycle.
They shouted that they wanted the diamond engagement ring from her now ex-husband, the US rapper Kayne West.
Kardashian had been showing it off on her social media channels — it alone was valued at $4 million (3.5 million euros).
They made off with the ring among $10 million worth of jewels.
The only item recovered was a diamond necklace dropped in the street while the thieves escaped.
It all lasted just 10 minutes, with Kardashian’s bodyguard arriving to rescue his client after he was alerted.
The suspects were arrested three months after the robbery, through DNA evidence.
But the gold seized was apparently melted down and investigators, who took hundreds of thousands of euros from the suspects when they were arrested, believe that much of the stolen haul was sold in Belgium.
Twelve suspects were charged, with 10 going on trial from Monday. One died in March this year and another is to be tried separately for health reasons.
“It wasn’t a major armed robbery” but an “easy” heist, said the main suspect, Aomar Ait Khedache, 68, known as “Old Omar.” His DNA from the scene helped investigators find him and the co-defendants.
He admitted tying up Kardashian, but disputes investigators’ claims that he was the mastermind behind the robbery.
He says he was approached by an unnamed “sponsor” who suggested the scheme on behalf of an “informant” very close to the star, who then gave them the green light.
According to his lawyer, Khedache now has severe hearing and speaking problems and can only express himself in writing.
Another key suspect is Didier Dubreucq, 69, known as “Blue Eyes,” accused of being the second person who stormed into Kardashian’s room. He denies the charges.
Yunice Abbas, 71, meanwhile stayed in the lobby while the two other men went up to her room, it is alleged.
He controversially sought to capitalize on the crime by writing a book titled: “I Kidnapped Kim Kardashian.”
Others on trial are accused of being facilitators and informants, including Gary Madar, the brother of Kardashian’s long-serving Paris driver.
He is accused of supplying information about her movements, which he denies.
Despite the “media hype,” the trial “must allow for calm debates,” warned one of the defense lawyers, Margot Pugliese.
The trial is due to last until May 23.
North Korea confirms that it dispatched troops to Russia to support its war against Ukraine
- Kim Jong Un sent troops to help Russia “annihilate and wipe out the Ukrainian neo-Nazi occupiers” of Kursk region
- Ukraine earlier said 4,000 of at least 10,000 North Koreans troops fighting with Russian for had been killed
Kim Jong Un sent troops to help Russia “annihilate and wipe out the Ukrainian neo-Nazi occupiers” of Kursk region
Ukraine earlier said 4,000 of at least 10,000 North Koreans troops fighting with Russian for had been killed
SEOUL, South Korea: North Korea confirmed Monday for the first time that it sent troops to Russia to support its war against Ukraine.
US, South Korean and Ukraine intelligence officials have said North Korea dispatched about 10,000-12,000 troops to Russia last fall. But North Korea hadn’t confirmed or denied its reported troop deployments to Russia until Monday.
Leader Kim Jong Un decided to send combat troops to Russia under a mutual defense treaty, the Central Military Commission of the ruling Workers’ Party said in a statement.
It cited Kim as saying the deployment was meant to “annihilate and wipe out the Ukrainian neo-Nazi occupiers and liberate the Kursk area in cooperation with the Russian armed forces.”
“They who fought for justice are all heroes and representatives of the honor of the motherland,” Kim said, according to the statement sent to state media.
In March, South Korea’s military said North Korea sent about 3,000 additional troops to Russia earlier this year, after its soldiers deployed on the Russian-Ukraine fronts suffered heavy casualties. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs assessed that around 4,000 North Korean soldiers had been killed or wounded.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier put the number of killed or wounded North Koreans at 4,000, though US estimates were lower at around 1,200.
In March, Kim expressed his unwavering support for Russia’s war in Ukraine during a meeting with a top Russian security official, Sergei Shoigu, in Pyongyang. State media reports said Kim and Shoigu reaffirmed their commitment to uphold the mutual defense treaty agreed upon last year. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko told Russian media the governments were discussing a potential visit by Kim to Moscow.
North Korea has been supplying a vast amount of conventional weapons to Russia as well. South Korea, the US and their partners worry that Russia could reward North Korea by transferring high-tech weapons technologies that can sharply enhance its nuclear weapons program. North Korea is expected to receive economic and other assistance from Russia as well.
North Korean soldiers are highly disciplined and well trained, but observers say they’ve become easy targets for drone and artillery attacks on Russian-Ukraine battlefields due to their lack of combat experience and unfamiliarity with the terrain.
Still, Ukrainian military and intelligence officials have assessed that the North Koreans are gaining crucial battlefield experience and have been key to Russia’s strategy of overwhelming Ukraine by throwing large numbers of soldiers into the battle for Kursk.
US says it struck 800 targets in Yemen, killed 100s of Houthis since March 15
- Washington’s forces have hammered the Houthis with air strikes since March 15, seeking to end the threat they pose to vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden
WASHINGTON: The United States has hit more than 800 targets in Yemen since mid-March, killing hundreds of Houthi rebel fighters, including members of the group’s leadership, the US military said Sunday.
Washington’s forces have hammered the Houthis with near-daily air strikes since March 15 in an operation dubbed “Rough Rider,” seeking to end the threat they pose to vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden and reestablish US regional “deterrence.”
“Since the start of Operation Rough Rider, USCENTCOM has struck over 800 targets. These strikes have killed hundreds of Houthi fighters and numerous Houthi leaders,” the military command responsible for the Middle East said in a statement that provided its most detailed accounting of the operation so far.
“The strikes have destroyed multiple command-and-control facilities, air defense systems, advanced weapons manufacturing facilities, and advanced weapons storage locations,” CENTCOM said.
Despite the strikes, the Houthis — who control large swaths of Yemen and have been at war with a Saudi-led coalition backing the internationally recognized government since 2015 — have continued to claim attacks against both US vessels and Israel.
CENTCOM said that “while the Houthis have continued to attack our vessels, our operations have degraded the pace and effectiveness of their attacks. Ballistic missile launches have dropped by 69 percent. Additionally, attacks from one-way attack drones have decreased by 55 percent.”
“Iran undoubtedly continues to provide support to the Houthis. The Houthis can only continue to attack our forces with the backing of the Iranian regime,” the military command said.
“We will continue to ratchet up the pressure until the objective is met, which remains the restoration of freedom of navigation and American deterrence in the region,” it added.
As the United States announced details on the latest round of its campaign against the Houthis, the rebel-controlled Al-Masirah TV reported that US strikes on the Yemeni capital Sanaa had killed at least eight people and wounded others.
Al-Masirah TV also broadcast footage of the rubble of destroyed homes and cars, as well as blood stains on the ground, while rescuers collected what appeared to be human remains in white cloth.
Earlier Sunday, Houthi media said overnight strikes on Sanaa had killed two people and wounded several more.
The latest strikes brings the death toll since March 15 to 228, according to an AFP tally based on Houthi announcements.
The Houthi rebels began targeting shipping in late 2023, claiming solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which has been devastated by a military campaign launched by Israel after a shock Hamas attack in October of that year.
Houthi attacks have prevented ships from passing through the Suez Canal — a vital route that normally carries about 12 percent of the world’s shipping traffic — forcing many companies into a costly detour around the tip of southern Africa.
The United States first began conducting strikes against the Houthis under the Biden administration, and President Donald Trump has vowed that military action against the rebels will continue until they are no longer a threat to shipping.
The Trump administration has been forced onto the political defensive during the Yemen campaign by scandals stemming from senior officials’ use of commercial messaging app Signal to discuss strikes that took place on March 15.
Last month, The Atlantic magazine revealed that its editor-in-chief was mistakenly included in a Signal chat in which officials, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, discussed the strikes.
US media outlets then reported earlier this month that Hegseth had shared information on the same strikes in a second Signal group chat with various people who would not normally be involved in such discussions, including his wife.
