Free Republic

The bloc’s offer of “associate member” status to Ottawa shows how U.S. allies are pulling closer together. But their plans face significant obstacles. The European Union’s invitation Wednesday for Canada to become an “associate member” of the bloc shows just how intent these traditional United States allies are on pursuing a more stable future by binding closer together. “We must urgently reimagine our partnerships,” Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said in the European Parliament in Strasbourg, a beaming Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada sitting just to her side. But there are no guarantees they...

City says it's developing a long-term environmental monitoring planWith the fire at Summerside's Sunbank solar farm burning for nearly two weeks, both the city and the province are continuing to monitor conditions at the site. Summerside and the P.E.I. government said in a joint news release that the situation is stable, with air-quality being monitored and reviewed by public health officials. The province's Chief Public Health Office recommends air-quality testing continue at the site. Testing indicates there is no evidence of health risks to residents, while Summerside's drinking water is safe for consumption, according to the release. "I have reviewed...

Prime Minister Mark Carney outlined his vision for a closer relationship between Canada and the EU Thursday, saying an alliance will help preserve sovereignty in the face of great powers.

The government announced a major tax reform at the Canada Investment Summit that will allow businesses to write off investments. The productivity mega-deduction will allow companies to expense the total cost of new investments across a number of sectors, including machinery, equipment, clean energy, zero-emission vehicles and more. "Our goal is simple — to make Canada the most attractive place in the G7 to invest," Prime Minister Mark Carney said at the summit. The program is an expansion of the government's earlier productivity super-deduction outlined in last year's budget, which initially extended to a limited selection of investments in things...

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened the European Union with 'very serious tariffs' or to 'stop trading' if it makes a trade deal with Canada 'with bad intentions.'

Canada has been invited to become the first “associate member” of the EU by the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen. In an unprecedented offer, von der Leyen said on Wednesday that the EU and Canada “see the world with the same eyes” through shared democratic values and common approaches to many big issues, from AI to climate breakdown, the Ukraine war and geopolitics. Speaking in the presence of the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, at the European parliament in Strasbourg, she said: “We want to bring the relationship with Canada to the highest level possible. We must urgently...

French President Emmanuel Macron will meet with Prime Minister Mark Carney in Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon next week to discuss energy and defence partnerships. The prime minister's office says Carney will travel to the French territory off the coast of Newfoundland on Sept. 20 for talks on aerospace, energy and critical minerals. The pair will also talk about quantum satellites and supercomputing. Carney says the two countries share a history and common values, and that working together is to the benefit of both nations. A statement from the French president's press office says Carney's trip will be the first official visit to the...

Mark Carney’s anti-American crusade risks hurting Canada’s economy while strengthening China and exposing the contradictions behind his trade war with the United States. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney now believes he is more than just the Western foil to Donald Trump and his MAGA movement—he is the global one. Accordingly, he seems determined to demonstrate to the world how to stand up to Donald Trump, to force Trump to lose the midterms, and to hurt the U.S. economy to such a degree that Trump will never again bully other nations. So, at the eleventh hour, Carney stormed out of an...

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney wants a closer relationship with the European Union and is exploring whether his country could become ​an "associate member" of the bloc, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. The EU, which has ‌not been flexible about membership rules in the past, is open to the idea of granting Canada a yet-to-be-created status of associate membership, the newspaper reported, citing unnamed officials both from the EU and Canada. Canada's embassy in Brussels and ​spokespeople at the European Commission did not respond to separate requests for comment. Canada's escalating trade war ​with the United States has...

A Customs and Border Protection supervisor assigned to the Maine-Canada border has been arrested and charged after FBI agents say he was caught on hidden camera tearing apart government computers, ripping out processors and memory, stuffing in cheaper parts, and plugging the machines back into CBP’s network. Terry “Jiajia” Liu, 39, of Calais, Maine, described himself as a native of Guangzhou, China. He worked as a CBP supervisor at the Calais Port of Entry, with duties stretching to the Ferry Point and Milltown crossings. CBP officers are required to be U.S. citizens. According to The Maine Wire, Liu has posted...

The mother of a convicted ISIS terrorist who plotted to 'create the next 9/11' is running for public office in Canada. Dr Khdiga R Metwally is on the ballot for Halton District School Board Ward 1 and 2 trustee, about 30 miles outside Toronto. Her son, Abdulrahman El Bahnasawy, is serving a 40-year prison sentence in the United States for plotting an ISIS terrorist attack in New York City during the summer of 2016. Metwally told the Daily Mail that her son is mentally ill and she 'rejects violence and extremism in all forms.' 'I have never supported any violent...

Canada and the European Union are working toward a wide-ranging relationship that will cover issues from trade to security to raw material exports. The alliance is meant to offset the increasing influence of the United States and China, Bloomberg reports. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the EU’s top executive, is set to announce plans for the increased partnership in Strasbourg, France on Sept. 16. Prime Minister Mark Carney will attend von der Leyen’s address, then will speak to European lawmakers the next day. Canada looking for new friendsCarney has made a deeper relationship with the EU a top...

British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband on Tuesday announced import ban on goods from illegal settlements in the the West Bank, as well as sanctions against specific individuals and businesses that provide services such as construction, instruction, financing or real estate for settlement expansion. The announcement was carried out in coordination with France and Canada.On August 19, UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said he would introduce a comprehensive set of measures in “the coming weeks.” Nevertheless, the timing has been criticized, coming just days before the Jewish High Holy Days begin - which has already been flagged as a dangerous period...

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that Canada-based airplane maker Bombardier would no longer be allowed to sell in the United States unless ​it started manufacturing in the states. "NO MORE SELLING BOMBARDIER ​IN THE UNITED STATES! Their products aren’t good enough!" Trump said in Truth Social post. "If they want our Market, they must ​build here, and stop treating America like a 'piggybank.'" Trump's post, ⁠which comes amid a ⁠growing trade dispute between Washington and Ottawa, ‌was the latest salvo in his campaign to pressure foreign and domestic companies to manufacture more products in the U.S. That objective has...

NO MORE SELLING BOMBARDIER IN THE UNITED STATES! Their products aren’t good enough! Over 50% of their revenue comes from the United States — They live off American Buyers, American Companies, American Airports, and American Service — All while Canada blocks our GREAT American Banks, and Companies, throughout the U.S.A. They even blocked Gulfstream Aerospace from doing business in Canada — Completely unjust and unfair! That Era is OVER! If they want our Market, they must build here, and stop treating America like a “piggybank.” BUY AMERICAN. FLY ON AMERICAN AIRLINERS. ENJOY AMERICAN LIQUOR AND BEVERAGES. SAIL ON LAKE AMERICA....

The Canadian economy’s labour market lost its steam in August, breaking a string of upbeat job reports ahead of the latest escalation of the trade war with the United States. Canada lost a net 42,000 jobs in August, falling short of economists’ expectations of a gain of 15,000 positions, Statistics Canada reported on Friday. The unemployment rate held steady at 6.4 per cent. It was a different story in the U.S., where employers added 162,000 jobs in August, coming in hotter than expectations of 55,000 jobs, the U.S. Bureau of Labour Statistics also reported on Friday. The U.S. unemployment rate...

In one of his Truth Social bombs, President Donald Trump insisted we should rename Lake Ontario to Lake America after Canada refused to accept his trade negotiation terms. It obviously echoes his renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. It's easy to find these whole geographic kerfuffles unnecessary. But the media hated the first one so much that the Associated Press found itself restricted from the White House press pool for refusing to accept the new Gulf terminology. What they hate is anything Trump does to add a patriotic pro-America tinge to something that they associate...

Canada’s ruling Liberal party has swept three byelections, a result that showed voters backing the prime minister, Mark Carney, after his face-off with Donald Trump. The Canadian Press, Canada’s national news agency, projected Liberal victories in Chicoutimi-Le Fjord in Quebec, Beaches-East York in Toronto and North Vancouver-Capilano in British Columbia. Carney said the results of Monday’s votes amounted to an endorsement of his government’s approach. “At this consequential time for Canada, voters have placed their trust in our government’s plan,” he said in a statement. The Quebec result was the most dramatic shift. The Liberal candidate Daniel Gobeil was projected...

The U.S.–Canada trade talks broke down on Aug. 21. Although both sides hold completely different views, they agreed on two common dealbreakers: bilateral coordination on Canada’s future trade deals with third countries and how deep tariff-rate cuts should go across sectors like autos, steel, and aluminum. A third, exempting U.S. companies from having to feature French-language content on streaming platforms, was resolved on Aug. 27 when the United States dropped the demand. Analysts say both sides share one other thing: the China factor, which neither names but looms over both positions.Neither the Canadian Prime Minister Carney nor U.S. Trade Representative...

President Trump's order to rename Lake Ontario to "Lake America" is stirring up more controversy, as tech companies decide whether to comply or not. The big picture: Google and other digital map providers — like MapQuest and Apple — have split on whether to accept the name change or keep Lake Ontario on their maps. Driving the news: An Axios review of Google and Apple Maps on Sunday showed Google now says "Lake America" on mobile and desktop, while Apple Maps says Lake Ontario. Google said Saturday that it had changed the maps in accordance with updates from the U.S....