Reuters: Canada to buy Kinder Morgan oil pipeline in bid to save project. Canada will buy Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd’s (KML.TO) Trans Mountain pipeline for C$4.5 billion ($3.5 billion), the government said on Tuesday, hoping to save a project that faces formidable political and environmental opposition. Finance Minister Bill Morneau said purchasing the pipeline was the only way to ensure that a planned expansion could proceed. The pipeline, running from the oil sands of Alberta to a port in the Pacific province of British Columbia, would allow Canadian crude to gain greater access to foreign markets and higher prices. Kinder Morgan Canada gave Ottawa until May 31 to come up with reassurances it could press ahead with plans to more than double the capacity of the existing pipeline amid efforts by British Columbia to block construction.

Reuters: Italy won’t ratify EU free-trade deal with Canada: farm minister. Italy will not ratify the European Union’s free trade agreement with Canada, its new agriculture minister said on Thursday, ratcheting up an international trade spat and potentially scuppering the EU’s biggest accord in years. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is the first major trade deal the European Union has signed since it began implementing its South Korea agreement in 2011. All 28 EU member states must approve the agreement for it to take full effect. In an interview with daily La Stampa, Minister Gian Marco Centinaio said the Italian government would ask the parliament not to ratify the treaty since it does not ensure sufficient protection for the country’s speciality foods.

New York Times: Canada blocks Chinese takeover on security concerns. Canada has blocked a $1 billion takeover of a construction company by a state-controlled Chinese company over national security concerns, a rare move by a government that until now has largely welcomed such deals despite growing skepticism over Chinese money elsewhere. The government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said late on Wednesday that it stopped the deal for the Aecon Group, a construction company that helped to build the landmark CN Tower in Toronto, following a review that began earlier this year. Canada has blocked a $1 billion takeover of a construction company by a state-controlled Chinese company over national security concerns, a rare move by a government that until now has largely welcomed such deals despite growing skepticism over Chinese money elsewhere.

The Atlantic: ‘There’s a Perception That Canada Is Being Invaded’. It may seem paradoxical. Last year, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared to issue an open invitation to refugees with a tweet declaring, “to those fleeing persecution, terror & war … #WelcomeToCanada.” This year, his government is working hard to deter thousands of people who are walking over the U.S. border to seek asylum in Canada. Canada has begun granting refugee status to fewer irregular border crossers—that is, people who walk into the country without going through a designated port of entry. Since President Donald Trump was elected, over 27,000 people have crossed into Canada overland.

Miami Herald: Canada slaps sanctions on Maduro’s wife and 13 other Venezuelans. Canada on Wednesday hit 14 Venezuelan officials — including President Nicolás Maduro’s wife — with sanctions in response to the “illegitimate and anti-democratic elections held in Venezuela on May 20.” The order freezes the assets of the individuals and bars people living in Canada, or Canadians living outside the country, from dealing in property or providing financial services to those on the list. Among those hit are Cilia Flores, Venezuela’s first lady and a member of the National Constituent Assembly (ANC). President Maduro was sanctioned by Canada in 2017.

Forbes: America joins with Canada and Japan to promote nuclear power. The United States hasn’t had much diplomatic success in the area of climate change lately. When Donald Trump announced his decision to pull the US out of the Paris Agreement last year, the administration assumed other countries would follow. But it didn’t come to pass. Instead, every country stayed in the accord, and the big players doubled down on their commitment the pact. US efforts to convince other countries such as Saudi Arabia to leave the pact, ahead of a G20 summit last year, failed. By the time of the UN climate summit in Bonn in November, it was clear the US had been seriously diplomatically side-lined. But at a summit in Copenhagen, Denmark last week, it was clear the US is now trying a different tact.

Wall Street Journal: Canadian hacker gets five-year sentence following 2014 Yahoo breach. A 23-year-old computer hacker was sentenced Tuesday to five years in prison over charges stemming from the massive 2014 security breach at Yahoo Inc., a campaign federal authorities have alleged was orchestrated by Russian spies. Karim Baratov, a dual Canadian-Kazakh national, had pledged guilty to computer-hacking charges. He was also fined $250, 000.

BBC: Canada politician seeks to decriminalise payment for surrogacy. A Canadian MP is proposing that the country decriminalise payment for women who choose to become surrogates. As global demand for Canadian surrogates grows, is commercialising the practice the answer? Leia Swanberg is the only person ever to be prosecuted under a Canadian law that prevents payment for surrogacy and limits the activities of surrogacy agencies. A two-time surrogate herself, the fertility agency owner and her company walked away with a combined C$60,000 ($46,000; £35,000) fine in 2014. The fines received by Ms Swanberg – who pleaded guilty to purchasing eggs, paying surrogates, and taking money to arrange surrogacies – could have been worse.

The Guardian: Canadian restaurant bombing suspects may be man and woman, police say. One of two suspects sought over an explosion that injured 15 people in a restaurant near Toronto may be a woman, Canadian police have said. Police previously said both suspects were men. But Peel regional police Supt Rob Ryan said on Tuesday that new video evidence and witness interviews suggest at least one of the suspects could be a woman. Investigators allege two people left an explosive device in the Mississauga, Ontario, restaurant and fled on foot before it detonated. They then jumped into an unidentified vehicle.

The Guardian: North Koreans in Canada outraged at Donald Trump’s praise of Kim Jong-un. In an unprecedented week for international geopolitics – during which Donald Trump praised the North Korean leader shortly after disparaging Canada’s prime minister – one group of people has been particularly shocked by the US president’s upending of diplomatic norms. Canada’s small community of North Korean defectors has been shocked and infuriated by Trump’s contrasting treatment of the two leaders: insults for Justin Trudeau after the G7 meeting in Quebec and flattery for Kim Jong-un at the summit in Singapore. By Bruce Livesey.

Business Insider South Africa: Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are reportedly planning their honeymoon in Canada, not Namibia — and the venue looks incredible. The UK’s Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are apparently planning their honeymoon in Canada. That’s according to sources who told TMZ the newlyweds are due to stay in Alberta, Canada’s luxurious Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, situated right in the middle of Jasper National Park. While the date is unknown, the couple will reportedly stay at the Outlook Cabin, which has become so popular among the royals it has been nicknamed “The Royal Retreat” — The Queen and Prince Philip stayed there in June 2005, while King George VI and Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother stayed there in 1939. There had been speculation that the couple would honeymoon in Namibia.

Economic Times-India: Canada to expedite student visa processing. In order to provide more eligible international students the opportunity to study at a Canadian post-secondary institution and to shorten the visa application processing time, the Government of Canada has made some changes to the student visa program.  As of June 8, 2018, the existing Student Partnership Program (SPP) in India will be replaced with the Student Direct Stream (SDS).  This new SDS programme will replace existing facilitation programs for students not only in India, but also in China, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Gulf News: Canada lifts travel visa restrictions on Emiratis. The UAE passport has another feather in its cap as one of the world’s most powerful passports following a Monday decision by the Canadian government to lift pre-entry visa restrictions on Emiratis travelling to that country. Now ranked as the 23rd most powerful passport, visa-free access to Canada now enables UAE citizens to travel to 155 countries around the world without obtaining pre-entry visas. Canada is the ninth country this year to lift visa restrictions for UAE nationals following countries such as China, Ireland, Burkina Faso, Uruguay, Guinea, Tonga and Honduras.

Al Bayan – United Arab Emirates: Canada to lift visa requirement on the United Arab Emirates. The decision, which will come into effect on the 5th of June, was based on a comprehensive and rigorous evaluation of the UAE against Canada’s visa policy criteria. The evaluation found that the UAE meets Canada’s criteria for a visa exemption. Canada’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Ahmed Hussen, stated that the UAE is a key strategic partner, and lifting the visa requirement will help reaffirm the strong relationship between the two countries, and promote increased tourism, cultural, academic and study exchanges, as well as foster new business, trade, and investment opportunities. Non-hydrocarbon trade between the UAE and Canada has amounted to $3.9b USD in 2016, while total investments made by the UAE in Canada surpassed 66 billion AED ($18b USD).

Al Awal News – Jordan: Canada to contribute $300m to gender equality partnership in developing countries. Canada’s Minister of International Development, Marie-Claude Bibeau, announced that Canada will launch consultations on the creation of a unique partnership to catalyze new investments in support of gender equality and women’s rights in developing countries. Canada will contribute $300m to such partnership. Bibeau noted that Canada has been committed to expanding innovative partnerships of the greatest potential to close gender gaps and eliminate barriers to gender equality in order to effectively reduce poverty and support women’s rights movements and organizations in developing countries.

Al Bayan – United Arab Emirates: Dubai Crown Prince meets Canadian Ambassador. In a meeting with Masud Husain, Canada’s Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, the Crown Prince of Dubai affirmed the strong relations the two nations enjoy, specially those in areas of cultural and scientific exchange. The Ambassador also conveyed the cordial greetings of Canada’s Minister of Defense. The meeting was attended by Emmanuel Kamarianakis, Consul General of Canada to Dubai and the Northern Emirates.

Ayn Al Iraq News: Iraqi Airways: Purchase of Canadian jets still under review. A spokesperson of Iraqi Airways stated that the company has formed a committee to study the economic feasibility of purchasing new Canadian-made Bombardier jets. While the committee has not yet made any decisions, the spokesperson said that the jets have proven their efficacy in Iraqi airports. Last year, the Iraqi Minister of Transportation has announced reaching a framework to enact an agreement made in 2013 with Bombardier to purchase new jets. The Iraqi Government has closed a deal with Bombardier in May 2008 to purchase 6 jets for domestic flights with 76-seat capacity, at the price of $38 million each.

China Internet Information Center-Arabic: Canadian trade expert: Trump’s tariffs are meaningless. Professor of trade policy at the University of British Columbia, Werner Antweiler, said in an interview that the tariffs imposed by the US President on Canadian steel and aluminum are meaningless and will rather harm the US economy, along with other economies around the world. Antweiler added that Canadian tit for tat retaliatory measures will include targeting the industries and States where Trump and the Republicans will feel the most economic and political pressure. It is not clear yet -although increasingly possible – that an all-out trade war will break between the two allies. If an agreement is not reached soon, the next target will be the Canadian auto sector – a nightmare scenario to the fully-integrated industry on both sides, Antweiler added.

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