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Canada calls for release of citizens 1,000 days into China detention

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Canada has called for the release of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor 1,000 days after the two were arrested in China.

Foreign Minister Marc Garneau, said the two Canadian men were arbitrarily detained as he condemned the lack of a transparent legal process in a Sunday statement.

“Years have been cruelly stolen from both men and their families,’’ Garneau said on the day marking 1,000 days since their detention.

“Arbitrarily detaining foreign citizens is unjust and immoral, this must stop. Mr Kovrig and Mr Spavor must come home,’’ the foreign minister added.

“ Spavor was taken into custody in December 2018, shortly after Canada detained Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Chinese telecommunications company Huawei.

Kovrig, a Canadian former diplomat, was detained at around the same time as Spavor, leading to accusations Beijing was engaging in hostage diplomacy, China has denied any connection.

In August, a court in the north-eastern Chinese city of Dandong found Spavor guilty of espionage and obtaining state secrets and sentenced him to 11 years in prison.

Kovrig was also facing trial on espionage charges, but no verdict has been reached against him yet.

Meng, the daughter of the Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei, was accused of bank fraud in the U.S., in connection with violating sanctions against Iran.

A trial to determine whether she should be extradited to the U.S. was in its final stages in Canada.

Relations between Beijing and Ottawa had been strained since Meng’s arrest.

At least three Canadian drug smugglers had since been sentenced to death.

NAN

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Foreign

Trump calls for Keystone XL pipeline plans to be revived

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Trump’s historic New York hush money trial begins with jury selection

U.S. President Donald Trump has called for the revival of the Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry oil from Canada to the U.S.

Trump took to his online platform Truth Social to urge the company building the pipeline to come back to America.

“The Trump administration is very different, easy approvals, almost immediate start.

“If not them, perhaps another pipeline company. We want the Keystone XL pipeline built,’’ he said.

The pipeline, first proposed in 2008, has been controversial from the start.

It would carry crude oil from oil sands in Alberta, Canada to Nebraska in the Midwestern U.S., where it would link up existing pipelines that connect to the Gulf of Mexico and the Mississippi River.

It was opposed by environmental groups and Native American tribes.

A long-standing battle between the oil industry and environmentalists trickled into politics and U.S. and Canadian courts.

Then U.S. president, Barack Obama, rejected the project in 2015 due to environmental concerns before Trump revived it during his first term in office.

Then, in one of his first actions as U.S. president in 2021, Joe Biden revoked Trump’s permit for the pipeline, stating that its construction was not consistent with his administration’s economic and climate goals.

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Trump plans 25% tariffs on steel, aluminium imports

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U.S. President Donald Trump plans to impose tariffs of 25 per cent on steel and aluminium imports into the United States, he said on Sunday.

“Any steel coming to the United States is going to have them, 25 per cent tariff,” Trump said, according to journalists travelling with the president. When questioned about tariffs on aluminium imports, Trump replied, “25 Per cent for both.”

Trump also confirmed his plan to announce further reciprocal tariffs in the coming week.

He spoke of an announcement on Tuesday or Wednesday.

“Very simply, if they charge us, we charge them, Trump told reporters, adding that the tariffs would go into effect almost immediately.”

U.S. tariffs of 10 per cent on Chinese goods took effect from Feb. 4.

The planned tariffs of 25 per cent on Mexico and Canada were suspended for an initial period of 30 days following promises from the two countries to increase border security measures.

Trump won November’s presidential election promising to slap high tariffs on foreign goods to reduce U.S. trade deficits.

He implemented a number of duties during his first term from 2017 to 2021.

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U.S. president considering 25% tariffs on Canada, Mexico starting in February

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Trump’s historic New York hush money trial begins with jury selection

Donald Trump said tariffs of 25 per cent on products from Canada and Mexico could be introduced as early as February, hours after taking office as US president on Monday.

Speaking at the White House while signing various orders shortly after his inauguration, Trump said, “We’re thinking in terms of 25 per cent on Mexico and Canada, because they’re allowing vast number of people … to come in.”

“I think we’ll do it Feb. 1,” Trump added, referring to the potential start date for the tariffs.

Earlier on Monday, the Wall Street Journal reported that Trump did not intend to impose tariffs on trading partners like Canada, Mexico, and China.

Instead, he planned to instruct the authorities to assess trade relations with China and its neighbours on the North American continent, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a summary of a planned memorandum and Trump’s advisers.

Shortly after winning the election in November, Trump threatened to impose tariffs on goods from Canada, Mexico, and China.

There are also fears in the EU that Trump could impose new tariffs.

Tariffs are a type of surcharge on imported goods. They are paid as goods enter the country.

Trump imposed a range of tariffs on imported goods during his first term in office from 2017 to 2021.

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