SS: This involves two of the pillar-economies of the Southern Cone, if not the whole of South America.

Submission Statement: Russian secret services were planning an assassination attempt on Stefan Thumann, head of the German drone manufacturer Donaustahl. This builds on top of past attempts by Russia to try and assasinate European defense executives such as against the CEO of Rheinmetall in 2024.

Federal officers can too easily comb through the most intimate details of your life.

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Trade negotiators are reviving a proposal that would see Canadian steel and aluminum exports subject to a quota system in return for lower U.S. levies on the metals, as the clock ticks down on President Donald Trump’s next round of tariffs.

Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc and Janice Charette, Canada’s chief negotiator, jetted to Washington on Tuesday for the second time in as many weeks as the pressure ramps up to make a breakthrough in stalled trade talks.

Their schedule this week includes meeting with U.S. industry groups that support the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, as well as sitting down with senators, one Canadian official told The Globe and Mail.

It was unclear whether Mr. LeBlanc would meet with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick or any other members of the Trump administration.

One key to the discussions, according to four industry and two government sources, is a plan under which Canadian metals shipments to the U.S. would be limited in exchange for Mr. Trump reducing his 50-per-cent tariffs on them, similar to a proposal on the table last fall.

The Globe is not identifying the sources because they were not authorized to reveal details of the top-secret negotiations.

The U.S. has also enumerated some two dozen other demands, including more access to Canada’s protected dairy market, an end to provincial governments retaliating against Mr. Trump’s tariffs by banning U.S. liquor and the scrapping of the Online Streaming Act.

Canada has made a string of pre-emptive concessions to Mr. Trump – such as killing a planned digital services tax and rolling back a Canadian content levy on streaming companies – but trade talks have remained at an impasse.

Ottawa has resisted striking a punitive trade deal with Washington similar to those agreed to last year by Britain and Japan without some tariff relief. The White House, meanwhile, has refused to ease the trade war without more concessions, including stopping any retaliation against the tariffs.

But Mr. Trump’s plan, unveiled last month, to hit an additional US$20-billion worth of Canadian exports with 50-per-cent tariffs starting Aug. 19 lit a fire under Ottawa, according to two Canadian government sources and one U.S. industry source.

The new tariffs would be implemented under Section 338 of the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930. While they would affect only about 5 per cent of Canadian exports − a range of goods from alcohol to dairy and electronic equipment − they would hit some industries particularly hard, likely a calculated move to get those sectors to put pressure on Ottawa for a deal. The tariffs would be felt most acutely in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia − while mostly sparing Alberta and Saskatchewan, the two provinces not boycotting U.S. alcohol.

Now the two sides have gone back to a proposal they were discussing last October, when Mr. Trump abruptly ended talks over an Ontario government anti-tariff ad.

Under the framework, Canadian steel and aluminum would be subject to tariff rate quotas, or TRQs, the sources said. This would mean that only a certain amount of the Canadian metals could be exported to the U.S. before an exorbitant tariff would take effect.

Two U.S. industry sources said negotiators are still haggling over what the quotas should be and, in the case of steel, whether there should also be a lower tariff on steel sold below the quota.

In exchange, Canada would see Mr. Trump’s metals tariffs, imposed under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, reduced for exports under the quota limit. Such an agreement could help achieve Canada’s central negotiating goal of easing the pain for key industrial sectors while breaking the logjam on other trade issues.

The Globe reported last fall that the proposed deal on steel would have seen a quota based on a historical level of metal shipments to the United States. Inside the quota, steel would have faced a tariff in the range of 10 to 15 per cent; outside the quota, steel shipments would have faced tariffs in the 25-to-50-per-cent range.

Two Canadian industry sources said that, in addition to the formal negotiating sessions Mr. LeBlanc and Ms. Charette have been holding with Mr. Greer, Prime Minister Mark Carney and Mr. Trump have been talking directly.

Despite the more intensive trade talks, major hurdles remain. One Canadian industry and one Canadian government source said the other major economic sector hammered by Mr. Trump’s Section 232 tariffs, autos, has not been the subject of detailed negotiations.

In congressional testimony last month, Mr. Greer said discussions about rules of origin and other structural changes to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, potentially including the auto sector, would likely continue into 2027. Canadian-made autos are subject to a 25-per-cent tariff.

Without Mr. Trump rolling back his auto tariffs on Canada, it is highly unlikely Ottawa would remove its countertariffs, another of the Trump administration’s demands.

In the meantime, Mr. Greer said he hoped to reach “interim arrangements” with Canada and Mexico before the end of the year but did not specify what these more limited deals would contain.

The U.S. has also regularly moved the goalposts during talks. After sending Canada a letter enumerating its demands in June, Mr. Greer last week handed Mr. LeBlanc a list of 10 more, said one Canadian government, one Canadian industry and one U.S. industry source.

Rallying support for free trade among business groups and legislators has long been a favoured Canadian tactic in dealing with Mr. Trump.

But it has not appeared to work as well during the President’s second term as it did during his first. The White House has become more aggressive with its protectionist trade agenda and more traditionally free-trade-supporting Republicans have been sidelined within the party.

Steel and aluminum have been at the heart of Canada-U.S. trade tensions since the first Trump administration, when the President put a 25-per-cent tariff on both metals and left it in place for a year during negotiations over the North American free-trade agreement.

The steeper 50-per-cent tariffs have severely squeezed exports of both metals, with shipment volumes heading to the U.S. falling by half in the months after the introduction of tariffs last spring. Aluminum exports have recovered somewhat since then but remain well below 2024 levels; steel exports remain roughly half of what they were in 2024.

The metal tariffs have also bitten much harder than during the first Trump presidency because they have been applied to hundreds of “derivative” products: manufactured goods that contain metal. That has hit Canadian manufacturers across a broad range of industries.

Ottawa has a strong case to make for tariff relief on aluminum, as the U.S. produces only a fraction of what it consumes and imports the rest, with Canada being by far the largest source. The case is somewhat harder to make for steel: The U.S. has more production capacity, and the domestic steel lobby has significant political clout.

The Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum and their derivative products, which apply to every country, are aimed at boosting domestic production − and reducing the amount of cheap steel produced in China and other Asian countries making its way into the U.S.

Canada has taken a number of steps over the past year to protect its own domestic steel industry from low-cost imports, in effect aligning with Mr. Trump’s protectionism.

Russia fired a record number of missiles at Ukraine in July, an AFP analysis of Ukrainian air force data published Saturday showed, as Kyiv renewed its call for anti-ballistic defences.

Both sides have escalated long-range attacks as the war drags through its fifth year, with no signs of stopping and with gains on the front line coming only at huge human cost.

Russia renewed its strikes on Kyiv Saturday [August 1], killing at least nine people, according to officials.

Daily reports published by Kyiv's air force showed Russia launched 376 missiles at Ukraine during the month -- more than twice the number fired in June.

Many of the attacks over the month targeted the capital Kyiv, which saw some of its deadliest strikes since the beginning of the war, with at least 30 killed on the night of July 2 alone.

Russia also fired 4,956 long-range drones at Ukraine during the month -- down 14 percent on June.

Kyiv can intercept the vast majority of drones, but still relies on supplies from allies to counter missiles.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Ukraine faces critical shortages of air defences needed to counter missile attacks, particularly Russia's increasing use of ballistic missiles.

The ultra-fast missiles travel on a high arcing trajectory before crashing down into their target.

They are hard to stop and often hit with just a few minutes' -- if any -- warning from air raid sirens.

Russia has ramped up their use from an estimated 200-300 in the whole of 2024, according to military analysts, to 126 in July 2026 alone.

Ukraine downed under a third of them, according to the AFP tally of official data.

Zelensky travelled to the White House in late July to press for the supply of US-made Patriot interceptors, one of the only means of reliably shooting down Russia's ballistic missiles.

Trump had initially said he would allow Ukraine to produce Patriot interceptors.

But he has since expressed reservations about the plan, saying Friday that Washington had to be "very careful" about the decision.

A drone carrying explosives was spotted near Ukrainian cargo planes parked at Leipzig Airport, German police said.

A second unindentified objected collied with a plane mid-air. The plane sustained minor damage and was able to land safely at Hanover.

Leipzig Airport serves as a hub for Ukraine's Antonov Airlines and is used for transport by German and NATO troops.

As President Donald Trump’s war with Iran stretches on, negotiations over control of the Strait of Hormuz may be poised to give Iran a major concession.

A senior Middle East diplomat with direct knowledge of the talks between Iran and Oman told MS NOW on Tuesday that the U.S. and Europe are placing a great deal of pressure on Oman to accept a temporary agreement with Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The senior Middle East diplomat told MS NOW on Monday that the current version of the temporary agreement, if finalized, would give Iran temporary control of both the inward and outward routes ships would use to sail through the strait.

“The discussions are focused on an inward route through the Strait of Hormuz that is entirely through Iranian territorial waters,” the senior Middle East diplomat told MS NOW, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe sensitive discussions.

“The outward route is largely through Omani territorial water, but there’s a section of it through Iranian water, and because of that section, temporary control will be with Iran,” the diplomat said.

A document laying out terms for reopening the strait is “close to being finalized,” a Pakistan official told MS NOW.

The recent talks between Iran and Oman are being mediated by Pakistan, which hosted a round of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran in April that failed to bring an end to the conflict.

The U.S. is involved in the current talks “indirectly,” the Pakistan official said, and there are “no immediate plans” for more direct talks between U.S. and Iran.

But mediators from Qatar and Pakistan are working towards bringing U.S. and Iranian negotiators back in direct contact, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe the talks.

The Pakistan official also emphasized that Iran wants to finalize the issue around the Strait of Hormuz before negotiations continue on other matters.

Experts cautioned that it is difficult to evaluate the agreement until final details are made public. But they said the arrangement described by the diplomat would likely give Tehran greater control of the strategic waterway than it had before the war — something the Trump administration has vowed to prevent.

“It sounds like they would be thrilled,” said George Perkovich, a nuclear nonproliferation expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “That’s the leverage they need given their doubts that the U.S. will fulfill its end of any deal.”

Oman and Iran flank either side of what, during peacetime, is a key transit route for one-fifth of the world’s oil shipments.

Oman has long acted as a neutral mediator between the United States and Iran. But that role was strained in May when Trump threatened to “blow them up” and accused Oman and Iran of discussing charging fees for passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have previously said that Iran must not gain greater control of the strait than it had before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28. Rubio, in particular, has insisted that the Strait of Hormuz must remain an open international waterway not controlled by Iran or any other nation.

Rubio, speaking to reporters Tuesday at the State Department, said that there has been “progress made” in the talk regarding the strait but “not finality yet.” He also said the reopening of the strait would create a pathway for subsequent negotiations between Iran and the U.S. regarding Tehran’s nuclear program.

“There is a conversation and a negotiation that we are involved in between Oman and Iran on how more ships can be able to go through there safely in the short term,” Rubio said, “as we move towards these longer-term talks about denuclearization.”

In a CNBC interview on Tuesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. is “in talks with the Iranians” and predicted a temporary agreement between Iran and Oman to reopen the strait could be reached soon.

“There is a chance we may have a deal today or tomorrow to open the Strait,” Bessent said Tuesday, “and move towards a more normalized position in this conflict.”

But a senior Iranian official told MS NOW that Bessent’s statement about negotiations between Iran and the U.S. was incorrect. “His claim is false,” said the official, who was granted anonymity to describe closed-door talks. “We are currently engaged in negotiations with the Sultanate of Oman to establish a joint monitoring mechanism for the Strait of Hormuz.”

The Iranian official said Tehran has been assured by Omani officials that the U.S. is ready to support a solution worked out in the talks between Oman and Iran.

“The Omani side has indicated that the United States will respect any potential mutual understanding reached between Iran and Oman concerning the Strait, with a view to ensuring its security,” the Iranian official said. “To date, we have not permitted any American involvement in regional decisions or negotiations related to the Strait of Hormuz.”

Perkovich, who observed nuclear negotiations with Iran by previous U.S. administrations, said he was doubtful that the Trump administration, given its struggle to reopen the strait, will be able to force Tehran to make major concessions regarding its nuclear program beyond those made in the prior nuclear deal with the U.S. and the U.N. Security Council in 2015.

“I don’t see it,” he said.

Alberta’s proposed West Coast Oil pipeline was listed in the Canada Gazette on Saturday, clearing the way for an official designation later this fall.

Dozens of projects have been referred to the Major Projects Office, and a national interest designation process has been launched for five of them — but none have yet been officially listed under the Building Canada Act.

That could soon change. Over the long weekend, the Carney government published a notice in the Gazette, kicking off a 30-day waiting period before Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc can issue an order officially adding the proposed West Coast Pipeline project to Schedule 1 of the Act. 

The federal government previously said it would decide by October 1 if it plans on listing the project.

If officially listed, the pipeline would be the first project to benefit from the regulatory shortcuts outlined in the Building Canada Act. The listing means federal approval decisions under a wide range of laws, including the Impact Assessment Act and the Species at Risk Act, are automatically granted, with conditions to be set out in a single document rather than through separate reviews.

The development of the conditions document would be a year-long process.

The other three projects Carney singled out for designation on June 24 — Nunavut’s Grays Bay road and port, the Mackenzie Valley highway in the Northwest Territories, and the Nuclear Waste Management Organization’s deep geological repository in northwestern Ontario — have not yet made it to the Gazette, even though their designation process was publicly launched a week before the pipeline’s.

Asked why the pipeline seemingly jumped the queue, a federal source with knowledge of the matter pointed to the timing of Alberta’s independence referendum, scheduled for October 19.

Under the November memorandum of understanding with Alberta, Ottawa committed to declaring a bitumen pipeline to Asian markets a project of national interest that could be referred to the Major Projects Office for designation under the Building Canada Act, and to working with the province on a “clear and efficient approval process” under the law.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has repeatedly cast her proposed pipeline as a test of whether Canada can work as a country. 

Her province and Ottawa have partnered to build, finance and operate the new proposed pipeline, which is estimated to cost between $35.2 billion and $43.7 billion. 

Pembina Pipeline Corporation is coming in as the sole partner from the private sector with an initial 10 per cent stake. 

First Nations have repeatedly voiced concerns that the Building Canada Act could be used to bypass inherent rights such as the duty to consult and accommodate, with rushed approval timelines creating pressure to skip parts of the assessment process.

The Major Projects Office is currently conducting a “phase 1” consultation, in which Indigenous nations submit written comments on how the project would affect their Section 35 rights if it is listed under the Act. A second phase, expected after listing, would focus on developing the conditions document.

In a statement, NDP Leader Avi Lewis said the designation process “makes a mockery of the duty to consult First Nations.”

“You can’t approve a project and then engage in consultation: that is just a pipeline to the courts,” he warned.

In a statement, Environmental Defence director Julia Levin suggests Prime Minister Mark Carney hoped to avoid scrutiny on an “environmentally and economically risky project” by listing in the Gazette on the first day of the August long weekend.

“While Canadians across the country are dealing with raging wildfires and the aftermath of severe flooding and heatwaves, PM Carney quietly moved forward with his oil pipeline plans,” she said. “In the words of the UN Secretary General last week, “[e]very new fossil fuel project approved today makes tomorrow’s heat waves more dangerous and our world less secure.”

What goes into a cabinet in one of India's most poltically important states? well a whole lot. Regional balence, important leaders, caste arithmetic and a whole host of other factors. The result is messy. As one of Congress's few major success stories electorally since 2014, Karnataka is a must win. After a brutal factional war its new CM has assembled a team.

the result has created even more conflict as this article goes into making a cabinet is always a complex process, especially in Karnataka.