CTV National News: Full steam ahead for cruise ship season in the Maritimes
Paul Hollingsworth has the story of the booming cruise ship industry in the Maritimes, which is bringing thousands of tourists to the region.
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CTV News
35 minutes ago
- CTV News
Russia starts direct commercial flights between Moscow and Pyongyang
Passengers gather to check-in for the first flight connecting Moscow and Pyongyang at Moscow's Sheremetyevo International airport amidst the warming relations between Russia and North Korea outside Moscow, Russia, Sunday, July 27, 2025. (AP Photo) MOSCOW — Russia on Sunday opened a regular air link between Moscow and Pyogyang, a move reflecting increasingly close ties between the two countries. The first flight operated by Russian carrier Nordwind took off from Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport carrying over 400 passengers. Russia's Transport Ministry said there will be one flight a month to meet demand. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who visited North Korea's new Wonsan-Kalma beach resort earlier this month to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, promised to encourage Russian tourists to visit the complex. The resort, which can accommodate nearly 20,000 people, is at the center of Kim's push to boost tourism to improve his country's troubled economy. North Korea has been slowly easing the curbs imposed during the pandemic and reopening its borders in phases. But the country hasn't said if it would fully resume international tourism. Regular flights between Russia's eastern port city of Vladivostok and Pyongyang reopened in 2023 following a break caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Russia and North Korea have sharply expanded military and other ties in recent years, with Pyongyang supplying weapons and troops to back Russia's military action in Ukraine. The Associated Press
National Post
an hour ago
- National Post
Michael Higgins: Musician and pastor Sean Feucht raises Indigenous ire by cancelling himself
Kawartha First Nations, Ont. — Controversial American musician and pastor Sean Feucht, who has been deplatformed and unwelcome at venues throughout Eastern Canada, is now himself under fire for cancelling a prayer service at a First Nations reserve. Article content Kawartha First Nations, near Fenelon Falls, Ont., reached out to Feucht last week after learning that six of his concert events in Eastern Canada had been cancelled. Article content Article content Feucht and an entourage turned up around midnight Saturday to inspect accommodation and the venue at the First Nations Treasure Island Resort and were less than pleased. Article content 'Maybe he heard Treasure Island Resort and thought it was more glamorous,' said Chief William of the Kawartha First Nations in an interview with National Post. Article content The resort is more humble than the word would suggest, catering as it does to selling ATVs, servicing people who drive them and offering some accommodation to homeless types. Article content 'Even if the accommodations weren't the Taj Mahal, we believe worship is about humility, not comfort,' said Deputy Chief Steve Lesperance in a statement. Article content However, Treasure Island Resort does have a Christian ethos and was hoping to attract a couple of hundred people to hear Feucht speak, some from as far away as Sault St. Marie, Ont. Article content Article content Feucht had agreed to hold a 9 a.m. prayer service at the resort on Sunday, July 27, but after viewing the accommodation, his Canadian national director sent the First Nations an email at 5 a.m. cancelling. Article content In that email, Nichola Shilton said Feucht 'was appalled with the sleeping conditions of the lodging that was provided, especially after a very long few days. He also had two women travelling with him and could not put them through sleeping in those conditions. Article content In an email reply to Shilton, Lesperance said they had a clean mobile home ready for Feucht as well as accommodations for 15 crew. Article content Lesperance wrote, 'Cassie, Sean's road manager, told me, 'all they wanted was a place to lay their heads and a shower' after sleeping on the bus for the last few days. We delivered exactly that.' Article content Article content Article content It is ironic that Feucht has risen to fame on the back of his shows being cancelled in Canada, only to cancel on a Christian First Nation that had reached out to help him. Article content Article content A disappointed Chief William believes that Feucht's actions were decidedly less than Christian. Article content 'We offered to put him up for a week so we could pray here. We would have prayed in the parking lot if necessary. Article content 'He didn't seem interested.' Article content Canadian venues which were supposed to host Feucht suddenly found themselves citing 'safety' concerns after discovering the missionary and musician held strong Christian beliefs on a range of topics, including abortion, gender, and LGBT communities. Article content Feucht is also a major supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, which, in the current climate, may have influenced the decision about whether to allow his concerts to go on. Article content Article content Feucht was supposed to begin a series of concerts beginning in Halifax last week at the York Redoubt National Historic Site. But Parks Canada pulled his permit, citing 'heightened public safety concerns.'
CTV News
2 hours ago
- CTV News
The Canadian passport continues to lose power, global ranking report suggests
The new Canadian passport is unveiled at an event at the Ottawa International Airport in Ottawa on Wednesday, May 10, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick Canada's passport continues to lose power compared to other countries, according to the latest global passport ranking data. At last tally by the Henley Passport Index (HPI), a Canadian passport scored 184 points, meaning it allows travellers to visit that many global destinations out of a possible 227 without needing a visa. Canada is tied with Estonia and the United Arab Emirates for the eighth-strongest passport in the world, down from seventh, when the index was last updated. Since the beginning of the year, Canada's passport dropped an additional point, now totalling four points lost in the last decade, according to the index. The HPI regularly ranks 199 passports globally, drawing on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). Alongside Venezuela, the United States, Vanuatu and the United Kingdom — Canada is among the countries with the fastest falling scores, according to the latest data published on July 22. According to a release from Henley and Partners, who manages the index, this represents a broader trend. 'Traditional mobility champions are losing ground in an increasingly multi-polar world,' the release notes. 'As emerging economies liberalize their visa regimes and invest in diplomatic capital, legacy powers like the U.K. and the U.S. appear to be retreating behind more restrictive entry policies.' The U.K. and U.S. have also dropped a ranking each in the global passport leaderboards since January, to sixth and 10th, respectively. The two countries were once the most powerful passports in the world — with the U.K. taking the top spot in 2015 and the U.S. doing so the year before. Now, the U.S. is on the verge of exiting the top 10 list for the first time in the index's 20-year history. Singapore, Japan and South Korea are currently in the top three spots, with 15 European countries following after. According to the report, the Asia-Pacific region is a leading driver of global travel. Demand for air travel saw 5.8 per cent growth over the first five months of 2025 worldwide, with some regional variations, while Asia-Pacific airlines saw 9.5 per cent growth, they note. 'Your passport is no longer just a travel document — it's a reflection of your country's diplomatic influence and international relationships,' Dr. Juerg Steffen, Chief Executive Officer at Henley & Partners, said in the release. 'In an era of growing inequality and mounting geopolitical uncertainty, strategic mobility and citizenship planning are more critical than ever.'
