SECURITY: Trump Envoy Witkoff Will Attend 6th Round Of Iran Talks On June 15
Jun-12 15:11
Newswires reporting confirmation that US President Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, will travel to Muscat, Oman, on Sunday, June 15, to attend the 6th round of US-Iran nuclear talks.
- As in previous rounds in Muscat and Rome, the talks are expected to take place in a mixed format of direct and indirect negotiations, with Omani officials acting as mediators.
- The talks come amid decreased optimism that a deal can be struck, with Iran hawks in the US pushing Trump to reject any deal that falls short of the complete neutralisation of Iran’s enrichment programme - a stated red line for Tehran.
- Iran has also adopted an increasingly hardline posture on accelerating enrichment, in contravention with the UN’s nuclear watchdog. Reuters notes that a “top US general” said this week's IAEA report on Iran was “troubling”.
- Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said in a statement on Wednesday: "As we resume talks on Sunday, it is clear that an agreement that can ensure the continued peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program is within reach -- and could be achieved rapidly,"
- The talks will take place amid heightened risk that Israel may pursue unilateral military action against Iran’s nuclear facilities. A strike on Iran would entail major risk for Israel as Washington’s support in repelling an Iranian counterattack, as in October 2023, may be less assured in light of recent warnings from Trump to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to refrain from any attack that could derail nuclear talks.
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CANADA: Champagne Retains Finance, Joly Moves To Industry In New Carney Cabinet
May-13 15:03
An official gov't statement has confirmed that Francois-Philippe Champagne will retain the Finance Minsitry in the first post-election cabinet for Prime Minister Mark Carney. Melanie Joly, who had served as Minister for Foreign Affairs since 2021 under former PM Justin Trudeau and Carney, moves to become Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, swapping roles with Anita Anand, who takes over the Foreign Affairs ministry.
- Dominic Leblanc will remain Minister of International Trade and Intergovernmental Affairs, heading up the crucial Canada-US trade portfolio. Tim Hodgson, a former colleague of Carney's at Goldman Sachs and an adviser to him during the PM's tenure as BoC governor, becomes Minister of Energy and National Resources.
- Former Finance Minister and Deputy PM Chrystia Freeland, who ran against Carney for the Liberal party leadership, retains the Transport and Internal Trade portfolio.
- As CBC reports, there will be 28 cabinet ministers and nine secretaries of state. Twenty-four of these are new ministers, with 13 having just been elected on 28 April. CBC: "Carney is elevating critics of former prime minister Justin Trudeau such as MPs Wayne Long and Joël Lightbound while removing some ministers who served under his predecessor, such as Bill Blair, Jonathan Wilkinson and Ginette Petitpas-Taylor, as he tries to show voters that things are changing in Ottawa on his watch."
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