The vehicle carrying North Korean leader Kim Jong Un leaves the St Regis hotel in Singapore, June 11, 2018. REUTERS/Athit PerawongmethaATHIT PERAWONGMETHA/Reuters
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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
On eve of summit, North Korea and U.S. raise hopes of a new era of Korean denuclearization
In a few hours U.S. President Donald Trump will meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore for the first summit between sitting leaders of those two countries. In an unusual move, the leaders will meet only accompanied by interpreters and not advisers. Both countries struck a cheery tone in the hours before the meeting, one that raises the prospects of Pyongyang abandoning its nuclear weapons program. Officials from both countries spent hours behind closed doors Monday in preparatory talks that U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo described as “moving quite rapidly.”
In the past year, North Korea’s nuclear program has grown significantly. This summit was initially meant to completely rid the North of its nuclear weapons, but Washington has since lowered expectations now calling it a chance to “start a dialogue.” From the history of the relationship, to what success and failure will look like, we break down the summit in this explainer.
Former NBA star Dennis Rodman has also arrived in Singapore saying his was “excited to be a part of it” referring to the summit. There has been no indication Mr. Rodman would be involved in official talks. The former basketball player has met Mr. Kim and has appeared twice on Celebrity Apprentice.
Italy claims victory as Spain offers to take in stranded migrant ship
Matteo Salvini, the head of the Italy’s xenophobic League party, interior minister and deputy prime minister, is preventing a rescue ship with more than 600 migrants from docking at a home port. The 77-metre ship, which is running short of food, was effectively stranded on Sunday and Monday in international waters in the Mediterranean between Sicily and Malta. As Eric Reguly reports from Rome, it is the first humanitarian and political emergency for Italy’s new populist coalition government. Before the government was formed, Mr. Salvini vowed to deport hundreds of thousands of migrants. On Monday afternoon, Spain offered the ship “safe harbour,” but the Spanish ports may be too far away.
Trade war looms: Trump adviser says Trudeau deserves ‘special place in hell’ for criticizing U.S. tariffs
Mr. Trump continued his tweets against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Monday saying that “Justin acts hurt when called out.” He also targeted the G7’s trade efforts, tweeting Monday “Fair trade is now to be called fool trade if it is not reciprocal.” The tweets come after Mr. Trudeau declared Canada won’t be “pushed around” and Mr. Trump called Mr. Trudeau “very dishonest and weak.” Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said Sunday Ottawa won’t be bullied and will hit back with $16-billion of retaliatory tariffs if the U.S. doesn’t rescind its penalties on steel and aluminum imposed last week.
Mel Cappe writes that Mr. Trump owes Mr. Trudeau an apology – belittling our Prime Minister is unacceptable. “Decent people do not belittle or mock their allies or their enemies. Decent people do not engage in juvenile name-calling. Decent people do not resort to personal attacks when they don’t like the outcome of a meeting. I think Mr. Trudeau should not stand for this. He should insist on a formal apology.”
Campbell Clark writes on why there won’t be any winners in this Canada-U.S. game of trade chicken. (for subscribers)
Cannabis industry warned not to ‘play fast and loose’ with new rules
Anne McLellan, a former cabinet minister and now head of a task force that made recommendations to the government for the cannabis bill, said companies aiming for a future in the market ought to be prepared to be flexible and patient even after the bill passes. Ms. McLellan made the comments Monday at the first World Cannabis Congress in Saint John. She warned that “everybody had better be on their best behaviour for the first few years” because there could be “enormous societal pushback.” Ms. McLellan said September is a possibility for legislation, but the provinces don’t want a date until their systems are ready. The bill is also going back to the House after passing the Senate with nearly four dozen amendments. (for subscribers)
The provinces will also be setting many of their own laws. Here’s a primer on how Canada is planning on regulating cannabis. (for subscribers)
B.C. pot producer Tilray weighs IPO
Tilray is working with BMO Nesbitt Burns and a New York-based investment bank on an initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter. The British Columbia-based company is Canada’s last major privately owned marijuana grower and has watched from the sidelines as dozens of other cannabis companies have gone public and used their shares as currency to make acquisitions. (for subscribers)
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MARKET WATCH
North American and European stocks edged up as investors shook off the weekend’s chaotic G7 summit ahead of a week packed with diplomatic events, while a pair of U.S. Treasury Department auctions met with strong demand. Canada’s main stock index rose, boosted by gains in materials and energy shares. The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX Composite index was up 60.60 points to 16,263.29. In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 5.78 points to 25,322.31, the S&P 500 gained 2.97 points to 2,782, and the Nasdaq Composite added 14.41 points to close at 7,659.93.
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WHAT’S TRENDING ON SOCIAL
Actor Robert De Niro slammed U.S. President Donald Trump at an event in Toronto and apologized for “the idiotic behaviour of my President.” Mr. De Niro was in Toronto with Mayor John Tory at the groundbreaking ceremony for a downtown condo-hotel project, which he is a partner. “It’s a disgrace. And I apologize to Justin Trudeau and the other people in the G7. It’s disgusting,” he said. The remarks come hours after Mr. De Niro used a four-letter insult when speaking about the president at Sunday night’s Tony Awards.
It isn’t just Mr. De Niro apologizing. Dozens of Americans sent letters to The Globe apologizing for the words of the President. “My wife and I wish to extend our sincere apologies for the childish behaviour of our current President,” wrote one couple from New York State. “Be patient, many of us are working to remove Donald Trump and restore our democracy. We thank Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for standing strong for Canadians and the world.” Here are 21 other letters.
TALKING POINTS
This Father’s Day, it’s time to rethink the daddy-daughter relationship
“Instead of being petrified by their daughters’ inevitable dating years, instead of mortifying them with talk of roughing up guys who show up at the front door, fathers such as West should invest more energy into the everyday of their daughters’ lives. When it’s time, the conversation ought to focus on what good relationships look like, not ridiculous karate chops and modest robes. Beyond daughters, perhaps West should also devote an aspirational song to Saint West, his son.“ – Zosia Bielski
Why are fax machines still the norm in 21st-century health care?
“Medical clinics in this country, on average, send and receive a mind-boggling 24,000 pages of faxed information annually. Only about one-third of family physicians and specialists e-mail their colleagues for clinical purposes, never mind patients. These data, from a 2017 survey of clinicians by Telus Health, remind us that, in the digital age, health care continues to clings desperately to the facsimile machine, a clunky technology that most industries have long ago relegated to the scrap heap.“ – André Picard
Let’s ensure our border remains a beacon of hope
“A much better solution would be to suspend the ‘safe third country’ arrangement until conditions in the United States change. The United States is no longer ‘safe’ for asylum seekers. And, unlike 2004, we can no longer regard our duty to them as met simply because they are within U.S. jurisdiction. Just as our government responded with strength to Mr. Trump’s absurd trade sanctions, we should make crystal clear that we will not be complicit in his mistreatment of refugees.“ – Lloyd Axworthy and Allan Rock
LIVING BETTER
How running gait increases injury risk
Researchers have been searching for decades without much success for reasons why some runners get injured. Most of their attention was on vertical forces. But a new study from researchers at the University of British Columbia now links running form to injury risk and offers some tentative hints on how to run better. Alex Hutchinson reports that the lead author says these insights aren’t a magic bullet, but increasing cadence and taking shorter, more frequent steps is a piece of the puzzle.
LONG READS FOR A LONG COMMUTE
‘It’s like having 100 toddlers’: Herd of goats helps Alberta cities keep weeds at bay
Jeannette Hall walks beside a pond in central Alberta, a friendly goat named Midnight baahhing behind her. All around her are goats, ambling along the path, stopping to bite the tops off tansies and scarf down scentless chamomile. For the past three years, Ms. Hall and her husband have run a company that travels around Alberta with a herd of 400 goats trained to eat noxious and invasive weeds. Last week they were in downtown Calgary. This week they have a gig in Edmonton. But as Marty Klinkenberg reports, for Ms. Hall it isn’t about a love of goats, it is about a love for the environment.
Mandela exhibit in Winnipeg re-imagined to look beyond the man to his astonishing achievements
When the Nelson Mandela exhibition opened in 2008 at Johannesburg’s Apartheid Museum, it was meant to be temporary. A decade later it is still there in a newly built wing and the museum created a touring version that has travelled around the world. Now, for the first time, a museum has taken the exhibition and re-imagined it, creating something new.
“This isn’t a history lesson,” said Apartheid Museum director Christopher Till. “It’s actually a wake-up call.” The show just opened at the Canadian Museum of Human Rights in Winnipeg and as Marsha Lederman reports, it not only adds a Canadian context, but looks beyond Mandela the man.
Evening Update is written by Jordan Chittley and S.R. Slobodian. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.