G7 Summit will be a test of Albanese's diplomatic skill
It's reasonable to question the motives behind the probe. Trump's 'America First Agenda' has already sparked a tariff war and destabilised the international rules-based order. Meanwhile, the president's transactional diplomacy, such as threatening to withdraw US troops from Ukraine and questioning the relevance of longstanding defence alliances, has cast a cloud over America's reliability as a credible security partner.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
AU Financial Review
29 minutes ago
- AU Financial Review
Thai, Cambodian leaders hold peace talks as Trump weighs in
Bangkok | Thai and Cambodian leaders were set for talks on Monday to halt the deadliest clash between the neighbours in more than a decade, with the US and China sending envoys after President Donald Trump used tariff threats to press for a ceasefire. Thailand's acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet were scheduled to meet in Kuala Lumpur at 3pm local time (5pm AEST), according to Thai government spokesman Jirayu Houngsub. The gathering was scheduled for the office of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who's facilitating the dialogue in his role as the chair of the Association of South-East Asian Nations.
7NEWS
29 minutes ago
- 7NEWS
US Prime Minister Keir Starmer expected to push US President Donald Trump on Gaza ceasefire during upcoming talks
US President Donald Trump will host British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at his golf resort in Scotland for talks expected to range from their recent bilateral trade deal to the worsening hunger crisis in Gaza. Trump, riding high after announcing a huge trade agreement with the European Union late on Sunday, said he expected Starmer would also be pleased. 'The prime minister of the UK, while he's not involved in this, will be very happy because you know, there's a certain unity that's been brought there, too,' Trump said. 'He's going to be very happy to see what we did.' Starmer had hoped to negotiate a drop in US steel and aluminium tariffs as part of the discussions, but Trump on Sunday ruled out any changes in the 50 per cent duties for the EU and has said the trade deal with Britain has been 'concluded'. The two men are expected to travel from Trump's luxury golf resort in Turnberry, on Scotland's west coast, on Monday to a second sprawling estate owned by Trump in the east, near Aberdeen. Starmer was heading to Scotland from Switzerland, where England on Sunday won the Women's European Championship final. Casting a shadow over their visit has been the deepening crisis in the war-torn Gaza enclave, where images of starving Palestinians have alarmed the world. Starmer has recalled his ministers from their summer recess for a cabinet meeting, a government source said on Sunday, most likely to discuss the situation in Gaza as pressure grows at home and abroad to recognise a Palestinian state. The British leader on Friday said his country would recognise a Palestinian state only as part of a negotiated peace deal, disappointing many in his Labour Party who want him to follow France in taking swifter action. Trump on Friday dismissed French President Emmanuel Macron's plan to recognise a Palestinian state, an intention that also drew strong condemnation from Israel, after similar moves from Spain, Norway and Ireland in 2024. Trump said he understood Starmer wanted to discuss Israel, adding that while the US would increase its aid to Gaza, it wanted others to join the effort. Ukraine will also be on the agenda. Dozens of Gazans have died of malnutrition in recent weeks, according to the Gaza health ministry in the Hamas-run enclave, with aid groups warning of mass hunger among Gaza's 2.2 million people.
ABC News
29 minutes ago
- ABC News
NT to reinstate use of spit hoods in youth detention, eight years after royal commission sparked ban
The Northern Territory government has flagged it will reinstate the use of spit hoods on young people in youth detention centres, almost eight years after the practice was banned. The proposal is one of several changes to the Youth Justice Act 2005 and Youth Justice Regulations 2006 expected to be introduced and debated in NT parliament this week by the Country Liberal Party (CLP) government. In a statement on Monday, the government said the proposed changes would also include: The CLP pledged during last year's NT election to reintroduce the use of spit hoods on youths if elected to government. On Monday, NT Deputy Chief Minister and Corrections Minister Gerard Maley said the legislative changes would be introduced to parliament as a matter of "urgency", following the stabbing at the weekend of a 15-year-old boy at the Royal Darwin Show. Mr Maley said the "community have had enough" when it came to youth crime in the territory. "This is another piece of legislation we're going to do to make sure Territorians can go to work, go to the show and live in the Northern Territory safely," he said. NT Corrections Commissioner Matthew Varley said the proposed amendments were about ensuring "safety and security" for staff and young people in youth detention centres. "These amendments this week are about making sure our staff have the tools, the powers and the procedures to make sure that environment is safe and secure,' he said. "We're wanting to see a change to the past where our officers have been exposed to risk, our officers have been exposed to assault and harm, and our youth detention centres have been damaged and destroyed. Controversy over the NT's use of spit hoods received significant media attention in 2016 following an ABC Four Corners report into the Don Dale Youth Detention Centre, which led to then-prime minister Malcolm Turnbull announcing a royal commission into juvenile justice and child protection in the territory. In 2017, following the federal government's formal endorsement of a United Nations protocol against torture and inhumane punishments, the NT government stopped the use of spit hoods and restraint chairs in youth detention centres. However, it was not until 2022 that the use of spit hoods for youth in police custody was also banned by the then-Labor government, though the ban was never formalised in legislation. In a statement on Monday, an NT Police Force (NTPF) spokesperson confirmed that since October 2024, spit hoods had once again been made available to use on youths in police watch houses and cells. "The NTPF have strict policies in place for their use", the spokesperson said. NT Children's Commissioner Shahleena Musk said the proposed amendments to the Youth Justice Act reflected a "failure" by the government "to meet with key stakeholders, including legal and social service experts". "It goes against all the evidence of what actually works to try to reduce challenging behaviours, particularly in a custodial setting," she said. "We're the only jurisdiction that is now going back to using spit hoods on children. Ms Musk said she was also concerned about the planned change to ensure detention was no longer a last resort. "[It] is against international law, it's against child rights. It can lead to unjust dispositions by the court, that is not able to then balance the needs of that child against other considerations," she said. Opposition Leader Selena Uibo labelled the government's decision a "reactive, knee-jerk response" that would not have a "holistic impact when it comes to improving community safety". "Everything that these millions and millions of dollars of royal commissions or reports have shown not to do, the CLP is doing," she said. In a statement, the National Network of Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls also condemned the proposed amendments and called for "the urgent withdrawal of this legislation". "These proposed changes represent a punitive attack on the rights, dignity, and lives of children in the Northern Territory," said Debbie Kilroy OAM, chief executive of Sisters Inside. Ms Kilroy labelled the re-introduction of spit hoods as a "grotesque failure of leadership", and cited the interstate cases of Wayne Fella Morrison and Selesa Taifaifa — who both died following incidents involving the use of spit hoods — as examples of their "deadly consequences". "Let us be clear: spit hoods are instruments of torture. They are used to degrade, control and silence," Ms Kilroy said. Ms Kilroy also criticised the planned removal of the principle of detention as a last resort. "Many of the children who appear before the courts are themselves victims — victims of violence, poverty, neglect, racism and state failure," she said. "They are not born 'offenders', they are criminalised by a system that was never designed to protect them." The proposed amendments will be introduced to the NT parliament on Tuesday.
