In Beijing, Blinken and Xi stress need for continued U.S.-China dialogue to avoid “any miscommunications”

Beijing — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Friday with Chinese President Xi Jinping and senior Chinese officials, warning of the dangers of misunderstandings and miscalculations as the United States and China butted heads over a number of contentious bilateral, regional and global issues. Blinken met with Xi in Beijing after holding talks with … Read more

Salvini’s last hope rests on building a bridge to Sicily – POLITICO

Salvini is pushing to launch the project by June, when European elections will be held that could make or break his leadership of the League.  The timing will be critical. As electoral support for the League shrinks, Salvini’s party colleagues are running out of patience. All 15 members of one local party association in Lombardy, … Read more

Bombardier gets federal exemption from sanctions on Russian titanium

Bombardier is now the second large Canadian corporation known to have been granted an exemption from federal government sanctions on Russian titanium. The Montreal-based aircraft manufacturer, along with its European partner Airbus, can continue to use parts containing titanium produced by Russia’s VSMPO-AVISMA, based in Verkhnyaya Salda. During a conference call Thursday with reporters following the release of Bombardier’s quarterly results, CEO … Read more

Serbia’s Vučić apologizes for calling Slovenians ‘disgusting’ – POLITICO

“It’s hard to say who was more disgusting, the Slovenians or someone else,” Vučić said earlier this week. The remarks triggered a swift rebuke from Ljubljana. Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon called them “an insult to our entire nation,” summoned the Serbian chargé d’affaires and demanded an apology. “The message is not suitable for a country … Read more

Still don’t know what to watch at Hot Docs? Here’s a last-minute guide, whether you’re in Toronto or not

Late to look up what’s hot at Hot Docs this year? Or are you unable to attend the Ontario festival that cut out its popular at-home streaming option?  Have no fear. CBC News has compiled some of the the best documentaries at the festival that are most worth your time. That includes some films that, as of … Read more

Moscow pressured Nicaragua to file genocide case against Germany, intel sources say  – POLITICO

Nicaragua has long been a champion of the Palestinian cause, but its move against Germany, with which it has traditionally enjoyed amicable ties, shocked many observers in Berlin and beyond. Just a week before Nicaragua brought the case against Germany on March 1, the German foreign ministry described the relationship between the two countries as … Read more

Students clash over Israel at elite French school – POLITICO

The movement has been embroiled in controversy over the past six months after refusing to label Hamas a “terrorist” organization, instead describing the Oct. 7 attack as a “war crime.” Sciences Po counts French President Emmanuel Macron among its alumni and is known as a breeding ground for the French political class. A few dozen … Read more

Kharkiv TV tower destroyed in Russian missile attack – POLITICO

“The attack on the TV tower in Kharkiv is part of a systematic, large-scale campaign against the Ukrainian civilian population by Russia,” said Oksana Romaniuk, head of the Institute of Mass Information, a think tank based in Kyiv. “The destruction of the TV tower is a war crime, both according to Ukrainian legislation and international … Read more

Without European rearmament, NATO is setting itself up for failure – POLITICO

However, repeated warnings that, should Ukraine lose, Russia will reconstitute its land forces and be ready to attack NATO have resulted in little more than procrastination and indecisive action. And besides the countries along NATO’s Eastern flank, Europe’s political leaders continue to behave as though not much has changed, as their rhetoric has yet to … Read more

Europe needs to ‘wake up’ and face the Iran threat, says Israel’s president – POLITICO

As Israel faces criticism from its allies over the scale of its assault on Gaza, which has left much of the enclave in ruins amid preparations for an Israeli assault on Rafah, Herzog was clear that Tehran is the real enemy. In response to Iranian drone and missile attacks on Israel last weekend, the Israeli government … Read more