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Saudi Arabia deposits $2 billion in Pakistan’s central bank as a boost ahead of a key IMF meeting

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:25 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Saudi Arabia has deposited $2 billion into Pakistan’s central bank, the government said Tuesday, a much-needed financial boost ahead of a critical meeting of the International Monetary Fund on the new bailout package for the cash-strapped South Asian country. In a video statement, Pakistani Finance Minister Ishaq Dar said the kingdom was making good on its promise to bolster Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves. The infusion is not a loan as such but will shore up the reserves and remain with Pakistan’s central bank for at least a year. The development comes on the eve of the meeting of he IMF’s executive board which is expected to approve a new and much-needed $3 billion loan to Pakistan to help the country overcome an economic crisis.Dar said that with the Saudi deposit, Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves which dropped to $9.6 billion last week — barely enough to pay import bills for a month — have gone up to $11.6. “We thank the Sa...

In the news today: Trudeau at NATO summit, new announcement from ethics watchdog

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:25 GMT

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed on what you need to know today…Canada lags behind allies as NATO plans to increase defence spending targetsPrime Minister Justin Trudeau is in Vilnius, Lithuania, today for the NATO leaders’ annual summit. The 31 member states are expected to make a more ambitious pledge on military spending than they have before. The target has long been for countries to spend two per cent of their GDP on defence, but now that’s expected to only be the minimum. Canada is currently spending just shy of 1.3 per cent of its economy on the military, and some experts say the time has come to signal that Canadians are more serious about meeting their obligations. Corporate ethics czar starting China labour probeOttawa’s corporate-ethics watchdog is set to announce investigations into whether Canadian companies are importing products made through human-rights violations in China.Sheri Meyerhoffer...

Rapper Lil Nas X reported to be among among scooter-riding tourists stopped in Oslo tunnel

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:25 GMT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Police in Norway’s capital briefly stopped four Americans who rode through an Oslo tunnel on electric scooters, and a Norwegian newspaper said one of them was rapper Lil Nas X. Authorities briefly closed the Festning tunnel, but none of the scooter riders were detained or charged. The tourists had followed a GPS route into the 1.8-kilometer (1.1 mile) downtown tunnel late Monday, police said. The four “used large parts of the roadway,” so a road traffic center had to shut down some lanes, police said. “They apologized. We have escorted them out,” the police department said on Twitter.Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet reported Tuesday that Lil Nas X, whose real name is Montero Lamar Hill, was one of the four tourists. The musician is in Oslo to perform at the outdoor Slottsffell festival nearby on Wednesday.It was not the first time that a foreign tourist rode through part of a vast and busy tunnel system in the center of the Norwegian capital on an...

First Nations chiefs gather in Halifax to hear from new interim chief after ousting

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:25 GMT

HALIFAX — Hundreds of Indigenous leaders are gathering today in Halifax for the start of the Assembly of First Nations annual general assembly, where they will hear from their new interim national chief for the first time. Joanna Bernard, a regional chief from New Brunswick, is to temporarily led the national advocacy organization after the dramatic ouster of national chief RoseAnne Archibald.Archibald was voted out during a recent special chiefs assembly held to address the findings of an investigation into staff members’ complaints about her conduct. Archibald told audiences during a Facebook Live broadcast in the lead-up to the three-day meeting that she may attend and that she is asking chiefs to reinstate her.Chiefs are gathering to discuss issues ranging from First Nations policing and self-governance legislation for Métis communities. The election of a new national chief and the appointment of a chief electoral officer are on the agenda, as well as speeches from federal...

Corporate ethics czar starting human-rights probes around Canadian imports from China

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:25 GMT

Ottawa’s corporate-ethics watchdog is set to announce multiple investigations into whether Canadian companies are importing products made through human-rights abuses in China, a move advocates have sought for years.The Liberals appointed Sheri Meyerhoffer as the first Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise in April 2019, and advocates and MPs have since criticized the government for not launching a single investigation.On Tuesday afternoon, Meyerhoffer will announce investigations into “the supply chains and operations of two Canadian companies” in China based on an “initial assessment of allegations of human rights abuses,” according to a press release.Her office also plans to publish 11 other reports “in the next few weeks” on unspecified cases.The Liberals promised to create the ombudsperson role in the 2015 campaign, replacing a post Stephen Harper’s Conservative government created in 2009 that was restricted to advising ...

Canada lags behind allies as NATO plans to increase defence spending targets

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:25 GMT

VILNIUS, Lithuania — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has made no secret of the fact that he wants more from member nations at this year’s leaders’ summit. Exactly how much more is still a matter for discussion, but the 31 states with NATO membership are expected to make a more ambitious pledge than they have to date. The agreed-upon target has been for each country to spend about two per cent of its GDP on defence. Now, that is expected to just be the minimum.Canada has agreed to the target but has not revealed a plan to reach it, with current spending sitting just shy of 1.3 per cent and political leaders including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Defence Minister Anita Anand shrugging off suggestions Canadians are not pulling their weight.But some observers say the time has come for Canada to signal to allies that it is serious about meeting its goals.“I don’t think that Canada can just keep its head down and avoid this,” said Tim Sayle, a NA...

‘Seeing is believing’: VR project immerses viewers in climate change on Yukon island

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:25 GMT

HERSCHEL ISLAND, YUKON — Surrounded by chirping birds, buzzing mosquitoes and waves gently lapping on the shore, viewers travel through time, witnessing a permafrost thaw slump, rising floodwaters and shrubs take over Qikiqtaruk or Herschel Island.The virtual reality project Qikiqtaruk: Arctic at Risk is transporting people to Yukon’s northernmost point without them ever having to leave home. Using real visuals and sounds, including the cracking and popping of permafrost thaw, the National Geography Society-funded project provides an immersive experience into the effects of climate change on the island in the Canadian Arctic. “There’s a lot of changes that I’ve seen over my 20 years working on Herschel,” said Richard Gordon, senior park ranger for Qikiqtaruk Territorial Park with Yukon Parks. Gordon said the coast is rapidly eroding, ice is going out earlier and it’s getting more difficult for elders to read the weather when travelling. He said bl...

Daily horoscope for July 11, 2023

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:25 GMT

Moon Alert: There are no restrictions to shopping or important decisions today. The Moon is in Taurus.Happy Birthday for Tuesday, July 11, 2023:You are charming, friendly and have excellent people skills. You are also intelligent, energetic and hardworking. This year is a time for reflection to explore philosophies and ideas that will give you better self-awareness and get you closer to the true meaning of your life.ARIES(March 21-April 19) ★★★★This is a great day to make money! Trust your ability to boost your earnings, find a better paying job or possibly make a little money on the side. You can do this today. Quite likely, your involvement will be behind the scenes or in a quiet way. Tonight: Cocoon.TAURUS(April 20-May 20) ★★★★★This is a wonderful day for you! The Moon is in your sign lined up with lucky Jupiter, and it is dancing with Saturn. This means it’s a productive day for you because you are confident, optimistic and, at the same time, grounded in a practical way. Y...

Dutch PM Rutte faces no confidence vote after collapse of government

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:25 GMT

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte (pictured) faced a no confidence vote in parliament on Monday (10 July) which could end his run as the longest serving government leader in Dutch history, three days after he abruptly handed in the resignation of his fourth administration.Rutte's coalition will stay on as caretaker government until a new administration is formed after the next elections, a process which in the fractured Dutch political landscape usually takes months.However, opposition parties are looking to oust Rutte immediately, saying he lost trustworthiness through his handling of negotiations over stricter migration policies, which led to the collapse of government on Friday."Rutte has caused this government crisis, we need an outsider to step in, to avoid standstill and repair trust," the leader of the opposition Labour party Attje Kuiken said on the Nieuwsuur TV program on Sunday night."In the interest of the country, he should step aside."Normally a no confidence vote wouldn'...

Miss Manners: I drove three days, then she said there was no room for me

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:53:25 GMT

DEAR MISS MANNERS: An old college friend contacted me because her mother was in a nursing home, in poor health. I had been close to her mother — to the whole family, in fact — at one time, although I had not heard from her in about 20 years. (There was no rift, just busy lives in different parts of the country.)Related ArticlesAdvice | Miss Manners: She’s supposed to be a friend, but she drops innuendo about my marriage Advice | Miss Manners: Is it tacky to bring pastries when I turn in my son’s school application? Advice | Miss Manners: Is it your hair? Or is it because you’re kinda mean? Advice | Miss Manners: I was smacked down for complaining about the gauche bachelor party Advice | Miss Manners: I say this young man is rude. My daughter says I’m the problem. I accepted the invitation to come visit her ailing mother and to stay in my friend’s home. They live ...