Xinhua world news summary at 0050 GMT, May 22
The achievement was announced during a special online meeting of economic and trade ministers from China and ASEAN on Tuesday, according to the ministry. (China-ASEAN-Trade)
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MUSCAT/TEHRAN -- Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Albusaidi said on Wednesday that the fifth round of indirect talks between the United States and Iran will be held in Rome on Friday, May 23. The announcement was made in a post on his official X account.
The talks, aimed at reviving stalled diplomacy over Iran's nuclear program and U.S. sanctions, are being facilitated by Oman. Four rounds have taken place since April, three in Muscat and one in Rome. (Iran-US-Indirect Talks)
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OTTAWA -- Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand said on Wednesday that she is summoning the Israeli ambassador over Israel Defense Forces' warning shots near a diplomatic tour in the West Bank.
Anand confirmed that four of Canada's personnel were part of the delegation when Israel Defense Forces fired shots. (Canada-Israel-Summons)
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JERUSALEM -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that all areas of the Gaza Strip will be under Israeli security control and Hamas will be defeated by the end of the ongoing "Operation Gideon's Chariots."
Netanyahu described the operation, which he said began on Saturday, as the "final phase" of Israel's military campaign. That campaign was launched following a Hamas-led attack on October 7, 2023, that killed about 1,200 people in Israel. (Israel-Gaza-Full Control)
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CTV News
32 minutes ago
- CTV News
Trump to put 25% tariffs on Japan and South Korea, new import taxes on 12 other nations
Japan and South Korea were among the 14 countries to receive a letter from U.S. President Trump warning of a 25 per cent tariff. Mike Le Couteur explains. WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday set a 25 per cent tax on goods imported from Japan and South Korea, as well as new tariff rates on a dozen other nations that would go into effect on Aug. 1. Trump provided notice by posting letters on Truth Social that were addressed to the leaders of the various countries. The letters warned them to not retaliate by increasing their own import taxes, or else the Trump administration would further increase tariffs. 'If for any reason you decide to raise your Tariffs, then, whatever the number you choose to raise them by, will be added onto the 25 per cent that we charge,' Trump wrote in the letters to Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung. The letters were not the final word from Trump on tariffs, so much as another episode in a global economic drama in which he has placed himself at the center. His moves have raised fears that economic growth would slow to a trickle, if not make the U.S. and other nations more vulnerable to a recession. But Trump is confident that tariffs are necessary to bring back domestic manufacturing and fund the tax cuts he signed into law last Friday. He mixed his sense of aggression with a willingness to still negotiate, signaling the likelihood that the drama and uncertainty would continue and that few things are ever final with Trump. 'It's all done,' Trump told reporters on Monday. 'I told you we'll make some deals, but for the most part we're going to send a letter.' Imports from Myanmar and Laos would be taxed at 40 per cent, Cambodia and Thailand at 36 per cent, Serbia and Bangladesh at 35 per cent, Indonesia at 32 per cent, South Africa and Bosnia and Herzegovina at 30 per cent and Kazakhstan, Malaysia and Tunisia at 25 per cent. Trump placed the word 'only' before revealing the rate in his letters to the foreign leaders, implying that he was being generous with his tariffs. But the letters generally followed a standard format, so much so that the one to Bosnia and Herzegovina initially addressed its woman leader, Zeljka Cvijanovi─ç, as 'Mr. President.' Trump later posted a corrected letter. Trade talks have yet to deliver several deals White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Trump was by setting the rates himself creating 'tailor-made trade plans for each and every country on this planet and that's what this administration continues to be focused on.' Following a now well-worn pattern, Trump plans to continue sharing the letters sent to his counterparts on social media and then mail them the documents, a stark departure from the more formal practices of all his predecessors when negotiating trade agreements. The letters are not agreed-to settlements but Trump's own choice on rates, a sign that the closed-door talks with foreign delegations failed to produce satisfactory results for either side. Wendy Cutler, vice president of the Asia Society Policy Institute who formerly worked in the office of the U.S. Trade Representative, said the tariff hikes on Japan and South Korea were 'unfortunate.' 'Both have been close partners on economic security matters and have a lot to offer the United States on priority matters like shipbuilding, semiconductors, critical minerals and energy cooperation,' Cutler said. Trump still has outstanding differences on trade with the European Union and India, among other trading partners. Tougher talks with China are on a longer time horizon in which imports from that nation are being taxed at 55 per cent. The office of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a statement that the tariff rates announced by Trump mischaracterized the trade relationship with the U.S., but it would 'continue with its diplomatic efforts towards a more balanced and mutually beneficial trade relationship with the United States' after having proposed a trade framework on May 20. Higher tariffs prompt market worries, more uncertainty ahead The S&P 500 stock index was down 0.8 per cent in Monday trading, while the interest charged on 10-year U.S. Treasury notes had increased to nearly 4.39 per cent, a figure that could translate into elevated rates for mortgages and auto loans. Trump has declared an economic emergency to unilaterally impose the taxes, suggesting they are remedies for past trade deficits even though many U.S. consumers have come to value autos, electronics and other goods from Japan and South Korea. The constitution grants Congress the power to levy tariffs under normal circumstances, though tariffs can also result from executive branch investigations regarding national security risks. Trump's ability to impose tariffs through an economic emergency is under legal challenge, with the administration appealing a May ruling by the U.S. Court of International Trade that said the president exceeded his authority. It's unclear what he gains strategically against China - another stated reason for the tariffs - by challenging two crucial partners in Asia, Japan and South Korea, that could counter China's economic heft. 'These tariffs may be modified, upward or downward, depending on our relationship with your Country,' Trump wrote in both letters. Because the new tariff rates go into effect in roughly three weeks, Trump is setting up a period of possibly tempestuous talks among the U.S. and its trade partners to reach new frameworks. 'I don't see a huge escalation or a walk back -- it's just more of the same,' said Scott Lincicome, a vice president at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank Trump initially roiled the financial markets by announcing tariff rates on dozens of countries, including 24 per cent on Japan and 25 per cent on South Korea. In order to calm the markets, Trump unveiled a 90-day negotiating period during which goods from most countries were taxed at a baseline 10 per cent. So far, the rates in the letters sent by Trump either match his April 2 tariffs or are generally close to them. The 90-day negotiating period technically ends on Wednesday, even as multiple administration officials suggested the three-week period before implementation is akin to overtime for additional talks that could change the rates. Trump plans to sign an executive order on Monday to delay the official tariff increases until Aug. 1, Leavitt said. Congressionally approved Trade agreements historically have sometimes taken years to negotiate because of the complexity. Administration officials have said Trump is relying on tariff revenues to help offset the tax cuts he signed into law on July 4, a move that could shift a greater share of the federal tax burden onto the middle class and poor as importers would likely pass along much of the cost of the tariffs. Trump has warned major retailers such as Walmart to simply 'eat' the higher costs, instead of increasing prices in ways that could intensify inflation. Josh Lipsky, chair of international economics at The Atlantic Council, said that a three-week delay in imposing the tariffs was unlikely sufficient for meaningful talks to take place. 'I take it as a signal that he is serious about most of these tariffs and it's not all a negotiating posture,' Lipsky said. Trade gaps persist, more tariff hikes are possible Trump's team promised 90 deals in 90 days, but his negotiations so far have produced only two trade frameworks. His outline of a deal with Vietnam was clearly designed to box out China from routing its America-bound goods through that country, by doubling the 20 per cent tariff charged on Vietnamese imports on anything traded transnationally. The quotas in the signed United Kingdom framework would spare that nation from the higher tariff rates being charged on steel, aluminum and autos, though British goods would generally face a 10 per cent tariff. The United States ran a $69.4 billion trade imbalance in goods with Japan in 2024 and a $66 billion imbalance with South Korea, according to the Census Bureau. The trade deficits are the differences between what the U.S. exports to a country relative to what it imports. According to Trump's letters, autos would be tariffed separately at the standard 25 per cent worldwide, while steel and aluminum imports would be taxed on 50 per cent. This is not the first time that Trump has tangled with Japan and South Korea on trade - and the new tariffs suggest his past deals made during his first term failed to deliver on his administration's own hype. In 2018, during Trump's first term, his administration celebrated a revamped trade agreement with South Korea as a major win. And in 2019, Trump signed a limited agreement with Japan on agricultural products and digital trade that at the time he called a 'huge victory for America's farmers, ranchers and growers.' Trump has also said on social media that countries aligned with the policy goals of BRICS, an organization composed of Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates, would face additional tariffs of 10 per cent. By Josh Boak. Associated Press writer Gerald Imray in Cape Town, South Africa contributed reporting.
Toronto Star
2 hours ago
- Toronto Star
Trump and Netanyahu take a victory lap to mark strikes on Iran nuclear facilities
WASHINGTON (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told President Donald Trump that he was nominating the U.S. leader for a Nobel Peace Prize as the two took a victory lap on Monday after their recent joint strikes on Iran 's nuclear facilities, with both hailing the 12-day war as an unmitigated success. The two leaders sat down with their top aides for a dinner in the White House Blue Room to mark the operation and discuss efforts to push forward with a 60-day ceasefire proposal to pause the conflict in Gaza.
Vancouver Sun
2 hours ago
- Vancouver Sun
Anand heads for Malaysia, Japan as part of Carney's Indo-Pacific trade, defence strategy
OTTAWA — Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand is headed off to Japan and Malaysia as the Carney government shapes its diplomatic and trade approach to the Indo-Pacific region. Anand will meet with her Japanese counterpart in Tokyo this week as the two finalize an agreement on sharing defence information and boosting trade. On Thursday and Friday, Anand will take part in a meeting with the Association of South East Asian Nations, or ASEAN, in Malaysia. Canada is looking to sign a trade deal with the ASEAN bloc this year, and in 2023 entered into a strategic partnership with the bloc that's expected to lead to business expansion, educational exchanges and projects combating biological threats. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Anand's visit comes ahead of this fall's ASEAN leader's summit in Malaysia, which Prime Minister Mark Carney says he will attend. Carney has largely focused on defence, security and trade ties with European nations in his first months in office, though he did sign a deal with Australia for an Arctic radar system. Former prime minister Justin Trudeau's government launched an Indo-Pacific strategy in 2022, seeking more trade and defence ties as a means to counter dependence on China. In a report on the strategy's implementation published last week, Global Affairs Canada says it has posted more than 70 new diplomats across the region since the strategy was launched. Kai Ostwald, a University of British Columbia political scientist, wrote in a recent analysis that Canada is building its brand in Southeast Asia through visits by the prime minister and a series of educational and trade delegations. He wrote for the Asia Pacific Foundation that interest in Canada has been boosted by U.S. President Donald Trump pushing away from multilateralism and international trade. 'Even if Canada cannot offer clarity on the path ahead, many in the region want it at the table as an interlocutor and sounding board while they navigate the turbulence,' Ostwald wrote. He said Canada can benefit from being seen as a middle power that hasn't colonized other countries, particularly if it can articulate a China policy that is cautious but not adversarial. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here .
